What Michael Wilson Really Thinks as Cardinals Contract Talks Continue

The NFL is often referred to as a, "what can you do for me now?" business, where success is demanded on a daily basis and past accomplishments don't matter much.

The battle between past production and future projection wages on in the desert.

Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Michael Wilson is entering his fourth season of professional football, making him eligible for a contract extension with his rookie deal coming to a close.

Wilson flashed playmaking ability through the first two years of his career before reaching 1,000 receiving yards in 2025 after tallying just over 50 receiving yards through the first five games of the season, making his final numbers even more impressive considering the slow start out of the gates.

Wilson burst on the scene and produced to eye-opening extents just before he became due for a potential payday, which should bode well for contract talks between his camp and the Cardinals this offseason.

"I don't really want to touch on that, because I want to keep that private between myself and the Cardinals organization with Monti [Ossenfort] and his team, but truthfully that whole situation isn't going to dictate my offseason," Wilson told reporters after OTA practice today.

"And that's not something I want to show up to the building with on my mind. I don't want that to affect how I show up every single day, because ultimately that stuff is going to take care of itself, like what I did last year, I can't change. That's my resume, that's what we're going off of. But as soon as Week 1 starts and we're playing against L.A. Chargers, contract stuff — that stuff doesn't matter.

"What I did doesn't matter, what I did last year doesn't matter. So I need to do what I need to make sure I'm taking care of what I can now, tomorrow, the next day after that, that's going to help me sort of replicate that season and build upon that."

Wilson's teammate and quarterback Jacoby Brissett is taking an opposite approach, as his absence in hopes of striking a new contract has dominated Cardinals storylines as the offseason progresses.

He had a different tone when speaking on the very quarterback that put him in position to be paid with a few extra commas in the bank account.

"The train is going to keep going, and like I'm not going to hold anything against Jacoby because he's trying to figure out his situation, which I think everyone in the building understands and can relate to that," Wilson said. "Hopefully we get Jacoby back whenever that situation figures itself out, but it's just business as usual."

Wilson's market value on Spotrac is around $18.2 million per season, which would make him WR23 in terms of annual salary.

We often forget that the NFL is, at its core, a business. Teams will always look out for their best interest and players should follow suit.

Sometimes that can lead to some bad blood, though the Cardinals' most productive receiver says he's well aware of the business side of the game since stepping into the league.

In fact, he leans on it.

"I think I've gotten a taste of it since my rookie year, just because the revolving door of the NFL. So you're constantly reminded every offseason, during the season, I don't know if our roster was the same from Week 1 to Week [18]. Constant new guys every single day, so that reminds you, and you know it's kind of a harsh reality of the NFL, then obviously with the rookies getting drafted, there's a reason why they're drafted: it's because they're here in a way to replace you in a sense," Wilson said.

"But I think that's good because what a privilege it is to be in a line of work where it requires you to be at your best every single day. I think that's what makes the NFL and what makes professional sports so fun, is it demands 100% every single day. I think that's why I love showing up to work every day, because I'm as competitive of a person as there comes, and that's what kind of gets me out of bed every day.

"Or it holds you accountable, not every day we can wake up feeling great, but knowing that in the back of your head, if you don't show up consistently day after day, you're going to be replaced, and so that's why I love football so much. It's not so much like catching passes, it's the competitiveness that comes with playing."

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