Cardinals center Rodney Hudson spent the offseason with his growing family, recovering from a season spent on injury lists (ribs) and COVID-19 lists.
With his wife having a second child, the 33-year-old pondered how much time he would spend away from his family as training camp and the season began.
Hudson missed mandatory minicamps this summer as he contemplated retiring after 11 seasons in the NFL, but ultimately decided to return to Arizona.
“In this sport, they say, ‘Family comes before football,’ and that’s a little bit untrue,” Hudson said. The kids go to bed in two hours. I went home, spent time with my family and tried to recover.From there.”
Head coach Cliff Kingsbury said he took a deep breath after seeing the starting center report for camp this week.
Hudson was an important addition to the Cardinals last season when it came to defending quarterback Kyler Murray and locker room leadership and pointing out his defensive looks.
He was also named captain of the team.
The offense looked different when he was healthy and on the sidelines, with the Cardinals going 9-3 in his start.
“We had a group prayer in the office for him,” Kingsbury said. And I saw how he was able to calm the whole unit down.
Hudson said he’s been enjoying spending time at home with his family, but has put his body in a place where he feels ready for next season. He said he didn’t know if it would be possible and would worry about the next offseason when the time came.
His contract runs until the 2023 campaign.
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Kingsbury said communication with Hudson remained strong throughout the process, and the center spoke frequently with teammates like guard Justin Pugh.
Hudson said he had spoken to his wife many times, but that it was his sole decision to go back.
“Once the season starts, we have everything,” Hudson said. “My family understands that. When the season is over, take some time to get back to normal life, spend time with your family, and then be ready to come back.”
Kingsbury said the team was worried as Hudson was considering retirement, but they understood what the lineman had been doing.
The head coach said the Cardinals know Hudson is 50/50 on what to do during minicamp and don’t want to force his hand.
Photo: Alex Weiner, Sports Illustrated
But it was an odd comment, as Kingsbury called his minicamp absence at the time “inexcusable.” said to have overcome
His teammates certainly appreciate his decision to come back.
“I’m so happy to have Rodney back,” said James Conner. “We are all mission-oriented and that is why Rodney is back. I felt he was capable. We have a great team. He is the middle man.”
Hudson returned to the practice range on Friday after taking a veteran’s day off on Thursday.
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