GLENDALE, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 23: Wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald #11 of the Arizona Cardinals walks off the field following the NFL game against the Los Angeles Rams at State Farm Stadium on December 23, 2018 in Glendale, Arizona. The Rams defeated the Cardinals 31-9. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)Larry Fitzgerald‘s status remains a big question as we move through the offseason. The 37-year old is weighing his options, as the Arizona Cardinals gear up for the 2021 season.
Fitzgerald, the greatest player in Cardinals history at this point, has not yet announced whether he’ll return for one more go-around with the team, or call it a career. He has spent his entire career in Arizona, and has the rare opportunity to go out on his own accord and finish a career with one team, something that few can do at this point in pro sports. He can also probably still contribute next year, and try and get his franchise back to the playoffs.
There has even been speculation that he could head elsewhere to try and play for a Super Bowl. His former head coach Bruce Arians now leads the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and he and Tom Brady share some serious mutual admiration.
As of now, it sounds like some NFL executives expect Fitzgerald to call it a career. Mike Sando of The Athletic reported as much today.
NFL execs expect Larry Fitzgerald to retire ahead of the 2021 season, per @SandoNFL pic.twitter.com/Y7v4VOi21K
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“While Fitzgerald remains unsigned and has not announced his intentions for 2021, execs anticipate he’ll retire rather than rejoin a receiving corps now headlined by DeAndre Hopkins,” Sando writes. Hopkins, one of the NFL’s truly elite receivers, has a pretty light practice schedule, and per the report, Fitzgerald may not appreciate that shift in the franchise.
Fitzgerald had the least productive season of his career in 2020, catching 54 balls for 409 yards and just one touchdown. All were career lows.
Hopkins, in his first year with the team, went for 115/1,407/6.
The Arizona Cardinals have understandably not put a timetable on Larry Fitzgerald to make a decision. They probably hope to have one ahead of the April 29 start of the NFL Draft, but right now we don’t have a great indiciation.
[The Athletic]