Many NFL players enter training camp this week with just one final season on their contract. In reality, the lack of guaranteed deals means just about every player is constantly battling to prove he's worth hanging onto for another year.
Arizona Cardinals receiver Michael Floyd is the prime example of a first-round pick who could be in the final year with the team by which he was drafted. Despite not getting a long-term deal ahead of his final contract season, Floyd isn't sweating having to prove he's worth paying.
"You still got to go out there and perform," Floyd said, via ESPN. "That's what I expect myself to do -- just going out there and doing the best that I can to put myself in a position to stay here in Arizona, which I want to. I love this place and the organization treats me well.
"Basically the ball's in my court. How I perform is all up to me."
Floyd earned 849 yards last season and six touchdowns. After a slow start, the 6-foot-2 wideout came on strong down the stretch, putting up five 100-plus-yard contests in his final eight games of the regular season. Floyd also added two TD snags in a playoff win over the Green Bay Packers.
As he prepares to enter the fifth year of his rookie contract, Floyd plans to show he should be worth big money to keep around.
"I don't (think) there's that much (more to show)," Floyd said. "It's just going out there each and every day and grinding and showing them that I'm that guy.
"I know that I'm that guy and I know that they can have for a long time here."
The Cards currently boast a glut of receiving targets. Floyd and speedster John Brown have been the deep targets with Larry Fitzgerald picking apart defenses underneath. Speedy but slight J.J. Nelson has received heaps of praise this offseason and Jaron Brown remains a depth player.
While retirement questions have swirled around Fitzgerald, if the all-time great does return in 2017, it would likely mean Floyd exits the scene. While Floyd offers a big body that Brown and Nelson don't possess, he hasn't proven an every-down difference maker worth the type of money to the Cardinals that he might fetch on the open market.
Of course, Floyd understands a big season could change that perception.
