Kent Somers

azcentral sports

In almost every spring of this decade, the same rumor about Larry Fitzgerald sprouted like a perennial flower.

The Cardinals were talking to the Patriots about trading Fitzgerald, their all-time leading receiver.

None of the rumors bore fruit, and Fitzgerald will be playing with a bird on his helmet, not a Patriot, when the teams meet Sunday night in Glendale.

“It was you that started the rumor, though,” Fitzgerald teased a reporter on Thursday. “Early in my career, it seemed like there was always talk about me being traded. You know how that stuff is. A lot of rumors and speculation, but not too often does it come to fruition.”

That doesn’t mean Fitzgerald and the Patriots don’t have a relationship. Fitzgerald knows practically every player in the NFL, so it’s no surprise he’s buddies with quarterback Tom Brady and has had casual conversations with coach Bill Belichick.

On a conference call with Arizona reporters this week, the first question posed to Belichick was about Fitzgerald.

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If Belichick is capable of gushing, he did about Fitzgerald: “Hall of Fame career, great career. Just does everything well. Great competitor, blocks, makes big catches, very consistent, unbelievable hands, big plays in the red area, scores touchdowns, unselfish player.

“I think he is a Hall of Fame receiver. One of the best that has played the game over this past period of time that he has been in the league.”

Fitzgerald reciprocates that feeling.

In the regular season, Fitzgerald watches video of other players and teams to try to pick up tips on route running and passing game concepts. In addition to the 10 or so players he regularly follows, he’s consistently watched and learned from the Patriots’ passing game.

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He could talk about the Patriots system and its history all afternoon.

“They’re so innovative in what they do,” he said. “You can tell they have a lot of trust amongst the receiver corps, with (Danny) Amendola, (Julian) Edelman and obviously Rob Gronkowski. You even go back into the day when Troy Brown and guys like that were doing it really well for them.

“They do a really good job of scheming people. What they do really, really well is they get the ball out of their hands quick, the quarterback, and into the receivers’ hands so they can break tackles and make plays after the catch. You can’t get a lot of pressure and they do a great job with running and the screen game. They keep you off-balance.”

Sunday will be the fourth time the Cardinals have played the Patriots in Fitzgerald’s 13-year career.

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They lost two of three, and Fitzgerald has never had a big game against them. His only touchdown was a 78-yarder in a 47-7 loss in 2008.

Fitzgerald’s first home game with the Cardinals came against the Patriots at Sun Devil Stadium in 2004. The Cardinals lost 23-12, and Fitzgerald caught five passes for 36 yards.

“I remember they couldn’t give the seats away,” Fitzgerald said, though attendance that day was 51,557, the largest home crowd of the year. “Now I look at the tickets and they’re $250. So a lot has changed in 13 years, and it’s great to be a part of that and see the growth in this organization.”

As a kid, Fitzgerald was a ball boy for the Vikings, but he was star struck that day against the Patriots, who had won their second Super Bowl the season before.

“I look across the line and I see Tedy Bruschi and Ted Johnson, Vince Wilfork, Big Ted Washington (who actually had moved on to the Raiders), Willie McGinest and Ty Law, and Rodney Harrison was talking trash to me and I didn’t even know him. He was crazy.

“I was like, ‘Man, this is the National Football League. This is what it’s all about.’ It was a fun experience."

The trade rumors of the past few years were fueled by Fitzgerald’s contract status and rising salary-cap figures. Surely, the reasoning went, the Cardinals would trade him before paying the money.

But at every juncture, the Cardinals and Fitzgerald worked out new deals, including last year (two years, $22 million) and this summer (adding another year at $11 million per).

One day soon, Fitzgerald, 33, will retire after a long career with just one team, though he’s not discounting the possibility of more trade rumors.

“It’s dead for a little bit,” he said, smiling. “Maybe next week it will start up again.”

