SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Arizona Cardinals fans have been waiting more than year to hear if Larry Fitzgerald will confirm that he is indeed retired. But, that wait continues after Fitz said he is not retired on Tuesday.
"I'm 38 years old," Fitzgerald told reporters at the WM Phoenix Open's 'Dream Day' Tuesday morning. "I'm a long way from retirement. Yeah, a long way."
However, Fitz did admit that he has transitioned into a 'Former-Athlete,' as seen on his LinkedIn page, and he is enjoying it.
"It’s great, it’s great. It’s no different, it’s great," Fitzgerald said. "I still have great interactions with all of my guys and you know, I’m prepared for everything and it’s just beautiful."
For Fitz, preparation was the key to a successful post-football life and was something he was focused on during his 17-year career in the NFL.
"Unfortunately, most athletes, they’re told, ‘Your career is over.’ You don’t have much time to prepare, you don’t have anything set up outside of the game to really help bridge that gap and that’s where you see guys struggle," Fitzgerald said. "You gotta think, I played 17 years, I made a million connections, I was able to do everything that I ever wanted to do in terms of preparing to be able to make a smooth transition whenever that time was. It was something I prepared for, and I was very fortunate for that."
Fitz said today that he spends a lot of time "just doing the dad stuff," raising his sons Apollo and Devin and that his transition from football has been smooth.
"There’s days that you watch the game (and) you see (DeAndre Hopkins) make a great catch or you see (Zach Ertz) do something special or you see (DJ Humphries) pancake a guy or (Chandler Jones) get a sack or (Budda Baker) get a pick and you get real excited and you wish you would be there and participating with it but, I had a great run," Fitzgerald said. "It was fun, I wouldn’t have changed anything. I wish I could have delivered more for the Valley in terms of winning a championship, but that’s water under the bridge at this point."
Fitz will take part in the WM Phoenix Open's Annexus Pro-Am Wednesday morning along with the most decorated Olympian of all time Michael Phelps, the NFL's all-time leading rusher Emmitt Smith and Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The event kicks off at 8:30 a.m. on TPC Scottsdale's Stadium Course.
The 2022 WM Phoenix Open runs Thursday-Sunday.
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