‘That’s my guy’: Kendrick Bourne ready to run through a wall for Cardinals’ Mike LaFleur

TEMPE — Larry Fitzgerald had plenty of highlights during his Hall of Fame career with the Arizona Cardinals.

But it was one in particular that really stuck with new Cardinals wide receiver Kendrick Bourne, especially when it came to how he viewed the franchise he would later join in his career.

“He had a game-winning catch. I don’t know what year it was, but it was crazy,” Bourne said during his introductory press conference on Thursday. “That’s when I was like, ‘Okay yeah, Arizona is different.’ It’s always competitive … that’s something that I always noticed. … I don’t know what specific game it was, but I know it was a game winner by Larry the Legend.

“That’s when it kind of started, but I’ve always been competing with this team, and so to be a part, I’m excited to see where his journey goes.”

Kendrick Bourne spoke about how a Larry Fitzgerald game-winning catch helped shape the way he viewed the Cardinals.

“I was like, ‘OK yeah, Arizona, they’re different.'”

He didn’t know the specific game, but looking back, it might be Fitz’s OT game-winner vs. the 49ers in 2017. pic.twitter.com/w2u0lb6hMs

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) March 13, 2026

While it’s not definitive, Bourne could be referring to Fitzgerald’s game-sealing touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers in an 18-15 overtime win in 2017.

Either way, Bourne now gets a chance to make his own big plays for a franchise he holds in such high regard.

“It’s amazing. It’s funny because I’ve always actually been a fan of like the culture and how competitive they were,” Bourne said. “Being a part of it now, I’m excited to join that competitive spirit. But it’s crazy, it’s crazy.

“Obviously, them over there (in San Francisco), they’re like, ‘Man, they’re mad. The fans are mad’ and stuff like that. But it’s just part of the game and an opportunity presented itself and I’m excited to be here. It’s a unique situation, but it’s time. It’s time.”

“I’ve always actually been a fan of the culture and how competitive they were.”

New Cardinals WR Kendrick Bourne is pumped to be in Arizona and reunited with Mike LaFleur ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/hNfDTE5kl0

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) March 12, 2026

The Fitzgerald connection isn’t the only link he has when it comes to the Cardinals.

Bourne and new Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur go way back to the wide receiver’s first stint with the 49ers. Then, LaFleur worked as San Francisco’s passing game coordinator for four years but also carried the title of wide receivers coach across Bourne’s first two years in the league.

“That’s my guy. He helped me so much my rookie year,” Bourne said. “He actually was one of the people that brought me into the league and so he developed me well in the receivers room and we just had a strong connection, strong relationship.

“That’s somebody that I want to be a part of.”

Cardinals new receiver Kendrick Bourne shares the impact Mike LaFleur made on him early in his career, and why he’s excited to play for him now.@BurnsAndGambo pic.twitter.com/SlsJzyKPa1

— Arizona Sports (@AZSports) March 13, 2026

“He’s somebody that I’m very close to and I’m passionate about so I’ll run through a wall for that guy. Whatever I got to do to help the team and help him start his head-coaching career off right.”

In his first season of a two-year deal with the team, Bourne will help round out and bring added leadership to a Cardinals’ pass-catching corps led by tight end Trey McBride and wide receivers Michael Wilson and Marvin Harrison Jr.

And of course, he already knows plenty about them.

“I’m super excited. I actually met Wilson after the game when he went for (185 yards). I had to just go up to him and just give him his flowers. … He followed me on socials and stuff like that, so connected with him.

“I’ve been a fan of Marv since college. McBride is just a beast the way he was talking out there on the field while we were competing. I just love seeing all that stuff,” Bourne said. “Being a fan of the game, I see people. Now to be teammates with these guys, I’m here to bring energy to them, help them grow and I know they’re going to help me grow.”

Kendrick Bourne (@KendrickBourne_) already knows a thing or two about his fellow Cardinals pass catchers.

– Met Michael Wilson after his 185-yard game to “give him his flowers.”

– Has been a fan of Marvin Harrison Jr. since college.

– Trey McBride “was just a beast the way… pic.twitter.com/qJoWTJ8GpB

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) March 12, 2026

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