ESPN Ownership: 80%
Yahoo! Ownership: 80%
Heresy, I know. Especially for someone living in Minnesota, where the Academy of Holy Angels high school proudly names Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald among its most notable attendees (he played there for one year), this seems to be a hot take. But hear me out.
In 2018, the Cardinals have averaged just 13.6 points per game – a low scoring ceiling for their skill position players to carve a piece out of. They remain an offense with issues, even after rookie quarterback Josh Rosen's ascension to the starting role, and Fitzgerald specifically is getting underused.
With Sam Bradford under center from Weeks 1 to 3, Fitzgerald led the team in targets, but with Rosen starting from Weeks 4 to 6, Fitzgerald has become the second receiver behind Christian Kirk. Even more so, Fitzgerald – who has averaged 9.5 targets per game over the previous three seasons – is down to just 5.5 targets per game in 2018 due to the overall horrible nature of the Cardinals. It’s not as if he’s in the lowest-ceiling role though; per NFL.com’s Next Gen Stats, Fitzgerald’s average depth of target is up nearly a yard from 2017.
But on an offense that's not getting into the red zone frequently and where he’s fallen behind another receiver, Fitz is just not the impact player we all hoped he’d be this year. He’s worth dropping if someone truly impactful is on the wire.