Wide receiver A.J. Green’s long run with the Bengals has come to an end and he’s now a member of the Cardinals after signing with the team as a free agent this week.
Green was one of the most productive receivers in the league for much of his time in Cincinnati, but his final years weren’t as successful. Injuries limited him in 2018 and cost him the entire 2019 season before he returned for a career-low 523 receiving yards in 16 games last season.
That run may not inspire mass confidence about what Green has left, but he argued otherwise on Thursday and invoked the name of another player who changed teams with great success.
“Coming to Arizona is refreshing,” Green said, via the Cardinals website. “You look around the league at Tom Brady and all these other guys that have been in these same places for years, and you saw what Tom Brady did last year. I think it’s good. . . . I feel like I have a lot left in the tank. I still feel young. The legs feel young. Last year was a difficult year for me, playing with the different quarterbacks and coming off an injury. But I wouldn’t change that for anything in the world. That made me a better person on the field, mentally stronger. I know I feel like I’ve got a lot more years left in me playing at a high level.”
As long as Kyler Murray is healthy, Green shouldn’t have to deal with any quarterback uncertainty and the presence of DeAndre Hopkins means he’ll see less attention than he’s used to from past seasons. The Cardinals and Green are betting that’s a formula for a rebound.