Larry Fitzgerald will not be returning to Arizona Cardinals
Dec 16, 2021, 5:53 PM | Updated: Dec 17, 2021, 11:08 am
Wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald will not be returning to the Arizona Cardinals, according to Arizona Sports‘ John Gambadoro.
The rumors of the WR’s return to the only NFL team he’s ever played for began to swirl once reports of Cardinals wideout DeAndre Hopkins (knee) being out for at least the remainder of the 2021 regular season began to emerge.
Gambadoro does not expect the team to sign another wide receiver in Hopkins’ absence.
Fitzgerald became a free agent in March and is already a shoo-in for the Pro Football Hall of Fame with a career that has seen him lead the league in receptions twice (2005 and 2016), record nine 1,000-yard seasons, and earn 11 Pro Bowl selections and one All-Pro selection.
He also won the 2016 Walter Payton Man of the Year award and recorded a whopping 942 receiving yards in just nine career playoff games.
The Cardinals had been adamant since the beginning of the offseason that there will always be a roster spot available for Fitzgerald should he have decided to return to the team.
However, general manager Steve Keim and Co. had to fill out the roster in case the future Hall of Famer decided to not come back.
The Cardinals did so by signing free agent wide receiver A.J. Green and drafting rookie WR Rondale Moore in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of Purdue.
Fitzgerald’s 17,492 career receiving yards rank second all-time behind Jerry Rice (22,895).
The Cardinals legend also ranks second all-time in receptions behind Rice (1,549) with 1,432 catches and is sixth in receiving touchdowns (121), putting him behind Rice, Randy Moss, Terrell Owen, Cris Carter and Marvin Harrison.
