The Arizona Cardinals have re-signed or retained 12 of their free agents entering the offseason. However, one notable player has not. That would be center A.Q. Shipley.
The Cardinals re-signed free agent offensive linemen Marcus Gilbert and Max Garcia. Thus far, Shipley remains unsigned.
“A.Q it’s still a work in progress,” head coach Kliff Kingsbury said in a video conference with reporters this week when asked whether they have interest in re-signing him. “He did a phenomenal job last year leadership-wise, to step into a college offense and the way he led that and bought into the tempo and the things we were doing. I couldn’t be more impressed with him.”
Kingsbury didn’t exactly give any real clarity, adding simply, ” We’ll see where that goes.”
It would appear with Mason Cole ready to play regularly, they are ready to move on from Shipley. Kingsbury repeatedly said last season how important Cole was and how he was basically even with Shipley in training camp and the preseason in terms of competing for the starting job.
Now it appears it is Cole’s job to lose. The Cardinals brought back Garcia, who can play center, and retain second-year center Lamont Gaillard.
The most likely scenario for a potential return for Shipley would be like back in 2015 when the Cardinals had moved on from Lyle Sendlein but re-signed in him training camp after they didn’t like what they saw from Ted Larson and others at center.
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