ARIZONA — The Arizona Cardinals have some of the most salary cap space in the league, and that’s partly thanks to their limited spending done the past two offseasons by general manager Monti Ossenfort, who has balanced both trimming unnecessary contracts off the roster while shopping in the bargain bin of free agency.
As it turns out, one of Arizona’s more low-key signings is providing enough value to become one of the best contracts in the league.
Center Hjalte Froholdt arrived with unclear expectations in 2023. He eventually grabbed the starting center job and has been an anchor for Arizona’s starting five since.
Froholdt hasn’t touched All-Pro levels, though his play and current cost (he signed a two-year, $4.6 million deal when landing in Arizona) has landed him on Bleacher Report’s list of the top team-friendly deals in the league.
From B/R’s Alex Kay:
“Froholdt had logged just six starts in his career—all with the Cleveland Browns in 2022—prior to joining the Cardinals on a two-year, $4.6 million deal last offseason. He went on to start all 17 games for them in 2023, logging 1,123 offensive snaps (the fifth-most of any center last season) and allowed a mere three sacks, per Pro Football Focus.
“While the 27-year-old’s PFF grade of 64.1 doesn’t jump off the page and the eight penalties he was flagged for could be improved upon, he more than earned his affordable pay last season.
“Considering Froholdt is only commanding $2.3 million in average annual value, which ranks No. 17 among centers, he’s already on one of the most team-friendly deals of the 2024 season.
“He hasn’t even had a chance to show further improvement yet, either, something that would provide the Cardinals an incredible return on their meager investment and set Froholdt up to sign a major deal next spring.”
There’s hope the offensive line around him can get better with new free agent additions Evan Brown (the potential starting left guard) and Jonah Williams – who will be starting opposite of Paris Johnson Jr. at tackle.
Froholdt’s contract is up at the end of this season, and we recently named him as one of three extension candidates in the desert – you can read more about that here.
