GLENDALE, Ariz. — Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald spent the last two weeks on the NFL’s COVID-19 list and in quarantine.
Fitzgerald had started 94 straight games dating back to 2014 prior to missing the last two Cardinals’ games, both games the team lost.
Fitzgerald said while in quarantine, it was both challenging mentally, and productive.
“I got a lot of work done, read a bunch. I was productive with the time at the house,” Fitzgerald said.
This included finishing a book and even getting his estate planning done and revising his will.
“When you’re sitting at home and you’re watching how many people are dying from this, you kind of re-evaluate things and it makes you really appreciate the health you have and talking to your kids every day,” Fitzgerald said.
Fitzgerald said he was receiving 200-400 text messages a day from people checking on him and wishing him well.
“Those kinds of things really put life in perspective and you really appreciate the things you do have in life.”
Fitzgerald said he had symptoms the weekend after Thanksgiving, saying there were about three days when he wasn’t feeling well.
“The scariest part, and I think anybody that’s had it knows, is nobody can really give you any answers...So your mind kind of wanders and you’re sitting at home and watching TV and you’re seeing the cases and the numbers running through the nation and you worry,” he said.
While he still can’t taste or smell much, he said he’s never felt better. Fitzgerald said he had some nagging problems prior to being placed on the COVID-19 list and it was good to get healed up. He said he did a lot of Peloton workouts and dropped about nine pounds as he didn’t have much of an appetite with COVID-19.
Fitzgerald said one of the hardest parts was feeling helpless while watching the Cardinals in their losses to the Patriots and Rams.
“It stinks to not be out there and not be able to help your team,” he said. “That’s a pretty helpless feeling to sit there on your couch and not be able to do anything, can’t talk to anybody, you’re not helping anything. You learn very quickly in this league you’re either part of the problem or you’re part of the solution and it’s hard not to feel like you’re not part of the problem when you’re not there to help. I hope that I can bring some added energy and do something to help our team get back in the winner’s circle.”
Fitzgerald did however say it was actually helpful to observe from a distance.
“When you’re playing in a game you’re really concerned about what your job is and what you need to be doing and how you can be effective to help your team, but when you’re taking a step back, a bird’s eye view, you see a lot more and I’ve discussed those things with my coaches and my teammates,” Fitzgerald said.
While he said it was a time to re-evaluate things and put things in perspective, Fitzgerald said how long he will play football didn’t really cross his mind. The 37-year-old say he doesn’t have an idea of when he’ll retire at this point.
After three straight losses, the Cardinals are all of a sudden 6-6 and on the outside looking in on the NFC playoff picture. The Cardinals play at the New York Giants on Sunday at 10 a.m. Arizona time.
