Larry Fitzgerald will earn an average of more than $17 million during the first three seasons of his new contract. That figure beats the amount for quarterbacks such as Eli Manning and Ben Roethlisberger.

Brodie Croyle is expected to sign with the Cardinals on Tuesday. Croyle is the former quarterback of the Chiefs. The signing is a sign that backups John Skelton (ankle) and Max Hall (left shoulder) could be questionable for Saturday's game against the Chargers.

The Cardinals will sign wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald to a record eight-year, $120 million deal, according to sources. The deal includes close to $50 million guaranteed. Fitzgerald, 27, would be under contract through 2018. The six additional years after 2012 would be worth $17 million each.

Cardinals rookie running back Ryan Williams will undergo surgery early next week to repair a ruptured patella tendon in his right knee. Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt said that the team will be looking to sign a running back soon, if only because one is needed to round out the reps in practice, then keep looking as other teams make roster cuts. "I think that there's a couple of guys out there," Whisenhunt said, "but you've got to do some research as to their role and how are they going to accept that role, because that's important to your team." Williams suffered the injury in a preseason game on Friday night.

The Cardinals may be without rookie running back Ryan Williams for the entire 2011 season. He was carted off the field with a right knee injury early in the third quarter during a preseason loss to the Packers Friday night. Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt said the team was "pretty certain" Williams ruptured his patella tendon. "If it is what we suspect, then, yes, it's a season-ender," Whisenhunt said.

Cardinals rookie cornerback Patrick Peterson is still playing with the second team. The belief was that he'd slide into the starting lineup when Arizona traded Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie to Philadelphia. Peterson continues to run with the backups behind second-year cornerback A.J. Jefferson and Greg Toler.

New quarterback Kevin Kolb says he is finally comfortable with the Cardinals' offense and looks forward to putting his newfound knowledge to a stern test when the team travels to face the NFL champion Packers. "Besides the game-planning part of it, we're pretty much done with the core install of the offense now and I understand it all and feel comfortable with it," he said before the week's final practice on Wednesday. "Now it's just a matter of going out there and getting enough reps, and that's vital."

Larry Fitzgerald's deal includes a clause that prevents the Cardinals from slapping their franchise tag on him after this season, according to two sources who have reviewed the contract, according to an ESPN.com report. This means that if Fitzgerald is not signed to an extension before his contract expires at the end of this season, he would have the ability to leave Arizona in the off-season, without any restrictions.

The Cardinals aren't desperate for a wide receiver, according to coach Ken Whisenhunt. The popular belief is that Arizona needs to replace No. 2 receiver Steve Breaston. Whisenhunt has been pleased with the development of Andre Roberts, who started Thursday night in the preseason opener against the Raiders. Early Doucet has looked good in camp, and the team signed veteran Chansi Stuckey in free agency. "Everybody wants to talk about the Number 2 receiver but we really don't get caught up in a Number 2," Whisenhunt said. "We run so many different packages where we involved three receivers, even four receivers, and there are a lot of times where we'll tailor specific packages to fit the individual strengths of the receiver."

Bills wide receiver Lee Evans responded predictably when asked about that possibility that he would be traded. "I don't really know," Evans said. "Obviously that's something that's out of my control. There's always rumors like that out there so we'll just have to see what happens." An Arizona radio station reported that the Cardinals have some interest in Evans. That report came after a National Football Post column on Sunday said some teams have been "sniffing around" about acquiring Evans.