cards to listen to trade offers for the Q

Pro Bowl WR Anquan Boldin has been asking for a trade since last summer, but most NFL experts believed there was no way the Cardinals would ever deal him. However, Cardinals general manager Rod Graves and coach Ken Whisenhunt told Darren Urban on the team’s official Web site that Arizona will listen to trade offers for Boldin:

“Before the draft, you know there is going to talk about Anquan and his situation and a trade,” Whisenhunt said. “Since not a whole lot has changed with his contractual situation, we know that will come back up.

“It would be foolish from our standpoint not to listen to those opportunities and see what actually exists. But I want to make the point … our goal is to re-sign him to a long-term deal. That hasn’t changed.”

Said general manager Rod Graves, “We just think it is prudent for us to evaluate all our options.”

The Cardinals have already talked some with other teams, although Graves declined to say which ones.

Urban reports that the Cardinals would seek a package similar to the one the Lions received from the Cowboys for WR Roy Williams — a first-, a third- and a sixth-round draft pick. But the Cardinals are dealing from a position of strength because Boldin still has two years left on his contract, so there’s no rush to get a deal done.

Teams rumored to be in the market for a wide receiver include the Giants, Eagles and Bears. However, the Cardinals might be reluctant to trade Boldin to another NFC team.