National Football League

ESPN ranks Patrick Peterson as one of NFL's most overpaid players

Published Jun. 23, 2015 12:50 p.m. ET

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Arizona Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson hopes to have a bounce back year in 2015. Peterson struggled in 2014 for a player of his caliber. Some of the struggles may be attributed to the diabetes Peterson said he was playing with all of last season.

Peterson is currently in the second year of a 5-year, $70,050,000 contract with the Cardinals with over $47 million guaranteed. Peterson is one of the highest paid players in the NFL.

According to ESPN.com, Peterson is the sixth most overpaid player in the entire league and played more like a corner worth $5 million last season rather than the $14 million he was owed.

Peterson was rewarded with a contract extension after an excellent 2013 campaign. The problem is he followed that up with a forgettable 2014 season. He allowed eight touchdowns, which tied for third most in the NFL behind David Amerson and Bradley Fletcher. In plenty of games he held his own, but he allowed nine catches for 174 receiving yards against the Falcons, and five catches for 122 yards against Washington. Part of Peterson's outstanding play in 2013 had to do with the fact that he tracked the opposing team's No. 1 receiver across the formation (although rarely in the slot), but in 2014 he primarily stayed at left cornerback, regardless of which WR lined up across from him. He is still clearly the Cardinals' top outside cornerback, and he was playing hurt for much of the season, but Arizona needs to hope he returns to his 2013 form -- because the Cardinals are tied to him for a while.

Peterson is poised for a bounce back year and to establish himself again as one of the premiere cornerbacks in football.