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The man with the golden hands is about to be fitted for the prestigious gold jacket.
Former Arizona Cardinals longtime great, Larry Fitzgerald, who retired in 2021 as the NFL’s second-leading player in career receptions and receiving yards, was officially named to the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame class during voting results revealed on Thursday, Feb. 5.
The announcement came during the NFL Honors event at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. Fitzgerald, 42, was elected during his first year of eligibility, as selected by a 50-person selection panel, and will formally be enshrined during Hall of Fame ceremonies in August in Canton, Ohio.
Fitzgerald joined QB Drew Brees, RB Roger Craig, LB Luke Kuechly and K Adam Vinatieri in the 2026 Hall of Fame Class.
“As both a person and a player, Larry Fitzgerald is in a class by himself,” Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill said in a team statement. “No one has represented the National Football League with greater consistency or distinction, on the field or off it. His selection to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility is a fitting reflection of that legacy.
"In Arizona, we were fortunate to have a front-row seat for all 17 of his remarkable seasons, and we are enormously proud to see him take his permanent place among the game’s all-time greats."
Before the vote was revealed, Fitzgerald told The Arizona Republic that he wasn't overly anxious.
"I mean, it’s out of my control," Fitzgerald said Tuesday, Feb. 3, at Scottsdale's DraftKings Sportsbook. "This is kind of the stance I’ve taken on it. I try not to worry too much about the things that I have zero control over. ...
"It’s for other people to make a decision on what the credibility of my career was. And do I hope they value it and take the things I did into consideration? Yes, but again, it’s out of my control."
Fitzgerald is a big fan of his fellow nominees.
"Of the 15 finalists, yeah, I have a relationship with all of them," he said. "It would be amazing if all 15 guys could get in because they’re deserving."
His selection three days ahead of the Super Bowl between the Patriots and Seahawks at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, however, was a no-brainer from the moment he retired — even though he never once officially announced he was walking away from the game.
An 11-time Pro Bowl selection, Fitzgerald spent his entire 17-year career with the Cardinals (2004-20), remains second all-time behind fellow Hall of Famer Jerry Rice with 1,432 catches and 17,492 receiving yards and ranks sixth with 121 career touchdown receptions.
He reached 1,000 receiving yards nine times and helped Arizona reach its only Super Bowl following the 2008 season. He set single-season records that postseason with 546 receiving yards and seven TD receptions, including a go-ahead 64-yard score with 2:37 to play in Super Bowl 43 before the Steelers rallied for a 27-23 win.
In addition to leading the NFL in total receptions with 107 during the 2016 season at age 33, Fitzgerald retired with more tackles in his career (41) than dropped passes (35).
The holder of virtually every receiving record possible in the Cardinals’ history books, Fitzgerald was always transparent that when he felt he was done with football, he would gladly walk away from it without hanging on longer than needed.
“The end is never really pretty for elite athletes,” he said during an interview in July 2017. “It never looks good. I mean, you watch Michael Jordan in a Washington Wizards uniform. Or you see Tony Dorsett playing for the Denver Broncos. Or Shaquille O’Neal playing for the Boston Celtics. I mean, it’s weird because you’re used to seeing them when they’re at their most dominant stage.
“But Willie Mays running 'round with bad knees after 20 years, it’s not pretty. For me, I really want to be able to play and do the things that I love and be able to walk away and still be someone who could play. That’s something I pride myself on. I don’t want to be a stealer. I don’t want to steal like that.”
Fitzgerald, who, after that interview, would go on to play four more years before calling it quits with no farewells and no goodbyes, also said he planned to walk away with no regrets.
“I feel good right now,” he said at the time. “When that changes, I’ll let you know. But it’ll never be in front of a podium and there will be no tears and none of that stuff. That’s not how it would ever be. That’s not how I am.”
Who Larry Fitzgerald is now is an official first-ballot member of the Hall of Fame.
Reach McManaman at bob.mcmanaman@arizonarepublic. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @azbobbymac and listen to him live every Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. on Roc and Manuch with Jimmy B on ESPN 620 (KTAR-AM) and every Thursday on the Doug Franz Unplugged podcast via Apple or Spotify.
Sign up for our free newsletters at https://profile.azcentral.com/newsletters/manage/ for complete coverage.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Cardinals great Larry Fitzgerald named to Hall of Fame
Continue reading...
Former Arizona Cardinals longtime great, Larry Fitzgerald, who retired in 2021 as the NFL’s second-leading player in career receptions and receiving yards, was officially named to the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame class during voting results revealed on Thursday, Feb. 5.
The announcement came during the NFL Honors event at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. Fitzgerald, 42, was elected during his first year of eligibility, as selected by a 50-person selection panel, and will formally be enshrined during Hall of Fame ceremonies in August in Canton, Ohio.
Fitzgerald joined QB Drew Brees, RB Roger Craig, LB Luke Kuechly and K Adam Vinatieri in the 2026 Hall of Fame Class.
“As both a person and a player, Larry Fitzgerald is in a class by himself,” Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill said in a team statement. “No one has represented the National Football League with greater consistency or distinction, on the field or off it. His selection to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility is a fitting reflection of that legacy.
"In Arizona, we were fortunate to have a front-row seat for all 17 of his remarkable seasons, and we are enormously proud to see him take his permanent place among the game’s all-time greats."
Before the vote was revealed, Fitzgerald told The Arizona Republic that he wasn't overly anxious.
"I mean, it’s out of my control," Fitzgerald said Tuesday, Feb. 3, at Scottsdale's DraftKings Sportsbook. "This is kind of the stance I’ve taken on it. I try not to worry too much about the things that I have zero control over. ...
"It’s for other people to make a decision on what the credibility of my career was. And do I hope they value it and take the things I did into consideration? Yes, but again, it’s out of my control."
Fitzgerald is a big fan of his fellow nominees.
"Of the 15 finalists, yeah, I have a relationship with all of them," he said. "It would be amazing if all 15 guys could get in because they’re deserving."
His selection three days ahead of the Super Bowl between the Patriots and Seahawks at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, however, was a no-brainer from the moment he retired — even though he never once officially announced he was walking away from the game.
An 11-time Pro Bowl selection, Fitzgerald spent his entire 17-year career with the Cardinals (2004-20), remains second all-time behind fellow Hall of Famer Jerry Rice with 1,432 catches and 17,492 receiving yards and ranks sixth with 121 career touchdown receptions.
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He reached 1,000 receiving yards nine times and helped Arizona reach its only Super Bowl following the 2008 season. He set single-season records that postseason with 546 receiving yards and seven TD receptions, including a go-ahead 64-yard score with 2:37 to play in Super Bowl 43 before the Steelers rallied for a 27-23 win.
In addition to leading the NFL in total receptions with 107 during the 2016 season at age 33, Fitzgerald retired with more tackles in his career (41) than dropped passes (35).
The holder of virtually every receiving record possible in the Cardinals’ history books, Fitzgerald was always transparent that when he felt he was done with football, he would gladly walk away from it without hanging on longer than needed.
“The end is never really pretty for elite athletes,” he said during an interview in July 2017. “It never looks good. I mean, you watch Michael Jordan in a Washington Wizards uniform. Or you see Tony Dorsett playing for the Denver Broncos. Or Shaquille O’Neal playing for the Boston Celtics. I mean, it’s weird because you’re used to seeing them when they’re at their most dominant stage.
“But Willie Mays running 'round with bad knees after 20 years, it’s not pretty. For me, I really want to be able to play and do the things that I love and be able to walk away and still be someone who could play. That’s something I pride myself on. I don’t want to be a stealer. I don’t want to steal like that.”
Fitzgerald, who, after that interview, would go on to play four more years before calling it quits with no farewells and no goodbyes, also said he planned to walk away with no regrets.
“I feel good right now,” he said at the time. “When that changes, I’ll let you know. But it’ll never be in front of a podium and there will be no tears and none of that stuff. That’s not how it would ever be. That’s not how I am.”
Who Larry Fitzgerald is now is an official first-ballot member of the Hall of Fame.
Reach McManaman at bob.mcmanaman@arizonarepublic. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @azbobbymac and listen to him live every Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. on Roc and Manuch with Jimmy B on ESPN 620 (KTAR-AM) and every Thursday on the Doug Franz Unplugged podcast via Apple or Spotify.
Sign up for our free newsletters at https://profile.azcentral.com/newsletters/manage/ for complete coverage.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Cardinals great Larry Fitzgerald named to Hall of Fame
Continue reading...
