No one is surprised when Arizona Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald makes a list of top players. He is on yet another list. This time it is Pro Football Focus’ top 101 players of the 2010s.
Fitzgerald comes in at No. 47 overall.
Few players in NFL history can even argue that they have better hands than Larry Fitzgerald. Over the entire decade, he had just 27 dropped passes from 1,347 targets, and he recorded more than 10,000 receiving yards despite regularly suffering substandard quarterback play. But for a brief respite from Carson Palmer in the middle of the decade, Fitzgerald has had precious little help from his quarterbacks over the past 10 years, yet he still produced with the best receivers in the game and even transitioned to the slot and back without even a hiccup in his game. Even with the decade capturing just the second half of his career, he still ranks as one of the best players of the past 10 years.
Fitzgerald is nearing the end of his career. He started last decade with big numbers. In 2012, it looked like he might be reaching the end. In 2013, Bruce Arians moved him to the slot and he had average seasons, but then from 2015-2017, he had three consecutive 100-reception seasons, leading the league once and coming in second once.
Ranked behind six other receivers for the decade — Julio Jones, Antonio Brown, Calvin Johnson, teammate DeAndre Hopkins, A.J. Green and Miek Evans — Fitzgerald’s spot is fair.
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Ep. 267
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