After Fitz, receivers a big question mark for Cardinals
Arizona looks for replacements for life after an icon
GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Arizona Cardinals have one of the best wide receivers to play the game but, beyond Larry Fitzgerald, the position is a major question mark for the team under first-year coach Steve Wilks.
The names of those competing for playing time and/or just a spot on the 53-man roster are hardly that familiar: Brice Butler, J.J. Nelson, Chad Williams, Greg Little, Christian Kirk and Trent Sherfield, among others.
Underrated is a good word to describe the group, the coach said.
“I think that’s exactly the point, just because (of) the perception that there’s not any big-time there that we don’t have good players,” Wilks said after the Cardinals sweated through an outdoor practice Friday.
The receivers on the roster, he said, are better than outsiders might think.
Fitzgerald had another banner season a year ago, finishing second in the league and tying a franchise record with 109 receptions for 1,156 yards as he climbed to No. 3 on the NFL lists for career receptions and yards receiving. At 34, he was the oldest player in league history to catch at least 100 passes in a season.
But nobody else caught more than 33 for the 2017 Cardinals and no other wide receiver more than 31. Add the departure of the Browns — Jaron and John (no relation) — via free agency and there wasn’t a lot left at the position when Wilks and new offensive coordinator Mike McCoy took over.
Nelson and Williams are holdovers, Butler signed as a free agent, Little hasn’t played in an NFL game since 2015 and Kirk was Arizona’s second-round draft pick out of Texas A&M. Sherfield is an undrafted rookie from Vanderbilt who has shown promise early in camp.
Like his coach, Butler believes the group is far better than people realize.
“There’s not a lot of household names, you can say that,” he said, “but we’ve got big talent in the room.”
Butler caught 15 passes for a career-best 317 yards and three touchdowns for the Dallas Cowboys last season and sees the current