Cardinals ageless WR Fitzgerald keeps on ticking
Dec 7, 2017 - 1:51 AM TEMPE, Ariz. -- If it weren't for their 34-year-old wide receiver, the Arizona Cardinals would be getting almost next to nothing out of the rest of their receiving corps.If you take away Larry Fitzgerald's 82 receptions for 878 yards and five touchdowns, the 16 other players who have caught at least one pass this season have combined for only 188 receptions for 2,359 yards and 13 touchdowns.
The player with the second-most receptions, Andre Ellington, was released after being inactive for the team's Week 11 game at Houston. And his 33 catches are just a little more than a third of what Fitzgerald has snared in this, his 14th NFL season.
With Ellington now gone, tight end Jermain Gresham's 27 receptions technically rank second on the team. No one besides Fitzgerald, meanwhile, has more than three touchdowns.
In last week's 32-16 loss to the Rams, Fitzgerald caught 10 passes for 98 yards and a touchdown. He was basically the only player quarterback Blaine Gabbert could find getting open during the fourth quarter.
"He's got just a good knack of finding zones, knowing when to get his head around, catch the ball, get north and south," Gabbert said. "It was just one of those situations where I was just going to feed him until he didn't want it anymore. Just having a guy like him to rely on, and in those situations where they know we're throwing it, the D-line knows we're throwing it, and just having him be able to get open, find zones and get yards."
Fitzgerald led the NFL in receptions last year (107) at age 33 and he's presently second behind only Pittsburgh's Antonio Brown (88). In 2015, Fitzgerald finished with a personal-best 109 catches. This is the best three-year stretch of his career and that it's coming this late in the game is not lost on Gabbert.
"It's unbelievable to watch, just the way he takes care of himself, the way he prepares, the way he asks questions in meetings like he's a young guy still," Gabbert said.
"Just the way he approaches work each and every day is really a great thing for the younger guys to see. If they can see a first-ballot Hall of Famer, a guy who's been doing it at the highest level for that extended period of time, he's just such a great example each and every day."
Fitzgerald recently agreed to a one-year extension for the 2018 season and Gabbert, who also hopes to be back with the Cardinals next season, said he knows what an honor it is to get to throw to him.
"He's great," Gabbert said. "Like I was alluding to, in that two-minute drill, he just has a knack for finding zones and getting open. But, just to see him still be able to beat man coverage on a consistent basis, he's one of those guys, when the ball's in the air, he's going to come down with it. So, just that comfort level, being able to throw him one-on-one matchups, really just a nice, trustworthy guy to have in the middle of the field."
SERIES HISTORY: 11th regular-season meeting. Cardinals lead series, 6-4. The series dates back to 1970 when the Cardinals played in St. Louis and the Titans were known as the Houston Oilers. Sunday's game marks just the fifth meeting since 1997. Arizona won the last meeting, 37-34 in overtime, at Tennessee in 2013. This will be the first time the Titans visit University of Phoenix Stadium. They are the only NFL team yet to play in Glendale at least once.
--The Cardinals got long snapper Aaron Brewer back on the field and he was practicing with the team on Wednesday for the first time since suffering a broken left wrist Oct. 8 against the Eagles. If his wrist holds up, he will officially be activated off the injured reserve list in time to be eligible to play this Sunday against the Titans.
"Aaron's clock started today, yeah," Arians said, adding when asked how Brewer's snaps looked, "They looked good. They looked fine. The big thing is just taking contact, you know, starting out again."
Punter Andy Lee said he also liked what he saw from the long snapper.
"Yeah, he looked good. He snapped the ball well," Lee said. "I'm sure it's not easy to come back and have to block and push people with that wrist, but he looked good and he said he felt good."
If he can play on Sunday, Brewer's return likely spells the end of long snapper Justin Drescher's time with the Cardinals. He was signed two days after Brewer got hurt and has had a handful of poor snaps since coming aboard.
--Left tackle Jared Veldheer showed up on Wednesday's injury report with an elbow issue and according to head coach Bruce Arians, he is day-to-day.
If Veldheer can't play Sunday vs. Tennessee, Arians said rookie Will Holden will start at left tackle.
--According to head coach Bruce Arians, there has not been any progress with running back Adrian Peterson's neck injury and it looks as though the veteran will miss his second straight game. Peterson didn't practice on Wednesday.
"It's really just time," Arians said, "the doctors and time."
--Also not practicing on Wednesday for the Cardinals were receiver John Brown (toe), defensive tackle Corey Peters (ankle) and safety Rudy Ford (knee). Nine others were limited. They were receivers Jaron Brown (knee) and J.J. Nelson (knee), linebacker Deone Bucannon (ankle), Drescher (shoulder), defensive tackle Josh Mauro (ankle), tight end Troy Niklas (hip/knee), cornerback Patrick Peterson (hamstring), center A.Q. Shipley (shoulder) and running back Kerwynn Williams (ribs).
Williams ran for 97 yards against the Rams despite playing with two cracked ribs.
"Kerwynn's fine," head coach Bruce Arians said. "Kerwynn's like the Energizer Bunny; he never slows down."
NOTES: LS Justin Drescher likely will be released following Aaron Brewer's return to practice after finally recovering from a fractured left wrist. On Monday, head coach Bruce Arians criticized Drescher for not holding his ground during Sunday's loss to the Rams when the snapper got barreled through three times on kick attempts, resulting in a blocked extra point and a blocked field goal. Initially, Arians thought the plays were legal.
Arians, though, said he talked with officials at the league office and that they told him all three plays were illegal and that game officials got it wrong on the field.
"They should have all been penalized, and even ones that weren't blocked should have been penalized," Arians said. "It was very disappointing, and when I talked to the league officials, especially when I saw the Kansas City-Jets game, the exact same play was penalized. It's just the (lack of) consistency throughout the league." ... QB Blaine Gabbert is set to become an unrestricted free agent after this season and head coach Bruce Arians has said the team has already had internal conversations about possibly signing Gabbert to an extension. Asked about his future on Wednesday, however, Gabbert preferred not to look ahead.
"I'm just worried about what time my next meeting is," he said on Wednesday. "I think it's at 2:15. So, the future will be when the future is, but I'm just taking it day-by-day right now."
Gabbert signed a one-year deal with the Cardinals last spring worth $895,000 that included a signing bonus of $80,000.
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