Larry Fitzgerald 2019 Outlook: Time to Bounce Back
6 years agoWith 1,303 receptions for 16,279 yards and 116 touchdowns, Larry Fitzgerald is a first ballot Hall of Famer as soon as he decides to hang up his cleats. But what does he have in the tank for 2019?
In a terrible offense in 2018, the entire Arizona offense was a dud. The offense ran the second fewest plays of any team in the league, and whether it be Sam Bradford or eventually Josh Rosen at the helm, the offensive line could not give either of them the time needed to have a solid season. This manifested itself in the stats of nearly all of their offensive weapons. Fitzgerald for example only managed a measly 69 receptions for 734 yards and six touchdowns, having put up three consecutive seasons of at least 100 receptions.
Not only did fantasy owners have enough of the Wilkes and McCoy debacle but so did ownership. Enter Kliff Kingsbury and the air raid offense.
However, it is not just the offensive scheme changes but also the addition of Kyler Murray, a quarterback seemingly built for the offense, which will help Fitzgerald attempt to bounce back from the WR28 finish in 2018. After a career of elite play, it would be beyond reprehensible for him to go out any other way than with a stellar final season. He is currently going off draft boards at WR44, as the last pick in the ninth round. Getting him here is an absolute steal as, even a simple repeat of last year would be an improvement, but he should far outperform that draft position in the new system. He is still going to be the slot receiver, but there is still value in that role. Will he finish as a top-12 WR as he did in 2015-2017? No. But a top-25 finish is well within reach for the best receiver of all-time not named Jerry Rice.