WARNER WOULD TAKE LESS MONEY IF IT BRINGS BOLDIN BACK

As he tries to squeeze a deal from the Cardinals that would put him among the highest-paid quarterbacks in the game, free-agent quarterback Kurt Warner isn’t doing a good job of persuading anyone that he’d actually leave Arizona. In an interview on Friday’s edition of The Dan Patrick Show, Warner said that he’d sacrifice $2 million per year of compensation if that money would enable the team to sign receiver Anquan Boldin to a long-term deal. It doesn’t sound like something a guy who’s serious about getting top dollar would say. But, still, Warner said that he has been playing under a contract that paid him below market value, and that he wants to be compensated at market value as he enters the twilight of his career. But market value is what the market will bear. With other teams surely convinced that Warner would simply take a market offer and try to get the Cardinals to match it, no team in its right mind would essentially negotiate for Arizona its ultimate contract with Warner. Frankly, Warner has only himself to blame for the current situation. By saying repeatedly that he plans to play for the Cardinals or no one in 2009, it becomes impossible to generate real interest elsewhere, now that he’s free to leave. That said, Warner claims that he’s talking to another franchise. The fact that he declined to name the team makes me wonder whether he really is.