NFL: Is Larry Fitzgerald going to retire before the 2021-2022 NFL season?
One has to roll back the years to remember that the Arizona Cardinals selected Larry Fitzgerald as the third overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft. Since being drafted, Larry Fitzgerald has spent 17-years with the Cardinals. Fitzgerald started contributing to the Cardinals offense in his rookie season.
During his rookie year, Larry Fitzgerald caught 58 passes for 780 yards and eight touchdowns. Fitzgerald led the NFL in receptions during his second season and surpassed 1,000 receiving yards with 10 touchdowns. When an NFL fan talks about some of the greatest players to ever wear a Cardinals uniform, it's hard not to mention Larry Fitzgerald.
It's being rumored that Larry Fitzgerald is contemplating retirement before the 2021-2022 NFL season. If this does end up happening, he will go down as one of the best wide receivers of all-time. Take a look at the successful 17-year career of Larry Fitzgerald.
NFL: Larry Fitzgerald's 17-year career with the Arizona Cardinals
Larry Fitzgerald has caught touchdown passes from 16 different quarterbacks during his career with the Arizona Cardinals. Kurt Warner and Carson Palmer have thrown the most touchdown passes to Fitzgerald. Larry Fitzgerald caught 39 touchdown passes from Kurt Warner. He caught 28 touchdowns from Larry Fitzgerald.
Even with 16 different quarterbacks, Larry Fitzgerald has led the NFL in receptions twice and led the NFL in receiving touchdowns twice. Fitzgerald has also surpassed the 1,000 yard receiving mark nine times throughout his career. He has also scored double-digit touchdowns five times throughout his NFL career.
Larry Fitzgerald has only missed a total of two starts throughout his 17-year career with the Cardinals. He's only dropped 29 passes in 17 years and has only dropped three over the past three seasons. Fitzgerald has only recorded single digits in yards per reception twice throughout his career.
Larry Fitzgerald's Career Stats
Targets: 2,335
Receptions: 1,432
Receiving yards: 17,492 yards
Yards per reception: 12.2 yards
Receiving touchdowns: 121
Larry Fitzgerald has also been selected to 11 different Pro Bowls and one First Team All-Pro selection. He won the 2016 NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame team All-2010s Team, and was selected to the NFL top 100 a total of 10 times. One of his biggest accomplishments is being selected to the NFL's 100 All-Time Team.
If Larry Fitzgerald retires from the NFL this off-season, he will go down as one of the greatest NFL wide receivers of all-time. He also has a spot reserved for him in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Fitzgerald will be missed not only by the Cardinals but by every NFL fan.