Larry Fitzgerald does not expect to be back with the Cardinals next season, a source familiar with the situation told FOX Sports Arizona on Wednesday. That could make Saturday's wild-card playoff game in Charlotte, N.C., the final game of the Valley icon's Arizona career.
Last week, general manager Steve Keim confirmed a Pro Football Talk report that the Cardinals had no plans to cut Fitzgerald despite an unworkable $23.6 million cap number next season, which would account for about 17 percent of the projected $141 million salary cap.
"I don't think it's any secret that we've said all along it's our intent to have Larry Fitzgerald retire a Cardinal," Keim told Arizona Sports 98.7 FM. "I don't want to get into it too deep, but with planning purposes, financially, from a cap standpoint, all those sorts of things, we have Larry's number already baked into our numbers."
"We've had ongoing talks with (Fitzgerald's agent) Eugene Parker, and we will continue to have ongoing talks," Keim added. "Even though it's still not 2015, it's my job to look at 2015, '16, '17 and years beyond, and we have to make good business decisions."
Fitzgerald's numbers don't justify his massive contract, but maybe the two sides can work out a deal that can keep him in Arizona for a while longer.
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