PHX Reporter

The arrival of Monti Ossenfort as the Cardinals' general manager signaled inevitable roster changes. Despite Ossenfort declining the fifth-year option for linebacker Zaven Collins, he expressed his appreciation for Collins by signing him to a two-year contract extension on Saturday, securing Collins in Arizona through the 2026 season.

"I'm a small-town dude," Collins said. "I've been like that since Day One. Know what I mean? Grew up with no stop lights, when I go back, there are still no stop lights. You can't really change, and I don't think I have changed at all. I'm the same guy. And I think they like that guy."

This news coincided with the announcement that fellow outside linebacker BJ Ojulari is out for the season due to a knee injury.

Collins was the team's 2021 first-round pick. The team could have exercised his option in May but chose not to. At the time, and reiterated again on Saturday, Collins appreciated Ossenfort's straightforwardness about not using it. He participated in all voluntary offseason work.

"Even though it wasn't picked up, you still want to be there (for the team)," Collins said. "That's something you don't want to miss out on."

Collins received a phone call from his agent at the start of training camp about an initial contract offer for an extension. Both parties worked on it until finalizing the deal as Ojulari's news went public.

ESPN reported that the extension is worth up to $14 million, with $11.25 million guaranteed. Had his fifth-year option been invoked for 2025, it would have been worth about $13 million.

Collins played inside linebacker during his first two seasons before coach Jonathan Gannon moved him outside last season. Last season he recorded 3.5 sacks and impressed in coverage within the new defensive scheme. He also had six tackles for loss among his 41 total tackles in a rotational system.

"He's a big part of what we want to do on defense this year and moving forward," Gannon said. "They've been working on that for a while and I'm glad they got that done now."

Collins led all Cardinals outside linebackers in playing time percentage at 58 percent of defensive snaps last season. Gannon noted Collins has "flexibility and some versatility that we need to apply." According to Collins, he played five different positions last season beyond his listed edge spot.

"Love Zaven, love where he's at, love what he brings for our defense and hopefully (we) keep him around here for a long time," Ossenfort stated in April.

Collins expressed no desire to explore free agency: "I've been here for the last four years; I've seen the culture shift in many ways and I see the culture (trending up) so you stay with it," he said. "And you want to stay with it—especially everything you've worked to build here; why would you want to bail out now?"