TEMPE, Ariz. — Former Arizona Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson is returning to the desert on Monday to retire as a member of the team that drafted him, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Peterson wraps up a 13-year career that began as the fifth overall pick by the Cardinals in 2011. He spent 10 seasons with the Cardinals, leaving after the 2020 season for the Minnesota Vikings. After two seasons in purple and gold, Peterson played for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2023 but did not play in 2024.
He went to eight straight Pro Bowls with the Cardinals, from his rookie year in 2011 through 2018.
Peterson developed a reputation as a dominant, lock-down cornerback for most of his career, which allowed Arizona to leave Peterson on an island while committing the resources of the 10 other defenders elsewhere.
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He had 36 interceptions in 201 career games, returning two for touchdowns. He also returned 195 punts for 1,816 yards and four touchdowns, all of which came as a rookie, and returned four kickoffs for 75 yards.
Peterson made headlines in 2018, when he asked for a trade. However, two days later, he walked back his request, saying he was just frustrated. After the season, Peterson said he would honor his contract, which ran through the 2020 season. He went to Minnesota as a free agent.
However, his discontent with the organization wasn’t quieted when he left Arizona.
Following a Vikings win over the Cardinals in 2022 in Minneapolis, Peterson made his feelings toward the Cardinals clear, sharing that disparaging emails were left on his chair during the 2020 season with the Cardinals and noting that, at that point, he still hadn’t talked with former Cardinals general manager Steve Keim, who chose not re-sign Peterson.
