Larry Fitzgeraldtold Fox Sports Radio that Washington Redskins quarterback Donovan McNabb has been working out with some Arizona Cardinals players simply because it's convenient, not because he's a leading candidate to join the team, as many pundits have speculated.
"Donovan has lived down here in Arizona for the last 10 years," Fitzgerald, the Cardinals' Pro Bowl wide receiver, said Tuesday. "He lives right up the street, and obviously I'm a big fan of his and I have been following his career since he was at Syracuse. We've been good friends over the years, and he works out when he wants to with us. It's not really a big deal. There are a lot of guys on other teams working out with us, so it's more about guys getting the work in, and at the end of the day, we're a fraternity."
Fitzgerald credited Arizona State University with facilitating the Cardinals' player-only workouts during the NFL lockout.
"ASU has done a great job of letting us use the facilities there," he said. "Some of the guys showed up to get the workout and throw the ball around. I think the thing that you really miss is being in the locker room, being around the guys, the team camaraderie, just that special bonding time that you have with your guys. I think we're able to get that right now but there is nothing like being in the locker room."
Fitzgerald indicated that those workouts still can't come close to the NFL's normal offseason routine.
"As a player, it's unfortunate because this is not what we wanted," he said. "We want to be playing football, we want to be participating in OTAs (organized team activities), and we want to be participating with our teammates in activities around the building. This is what we have been doing for as long as any of us can think of and we want to continue to get back there."
Last season, Fitzgerald caught passes from three different quarterbacks -- Derek Anderson, Max Hall and John Skelton. That was after the team decided to part ways with former first-round pick Matt Leinart during the offseason.
""We just went in a different direction," Fitzgerald said of Leinart, who ultimately was picked up by the Houston Texans. "Matt's a heck of a player. I think you can all attest for that watching him grow up in the L.A. area, playing at (USC), Heisman Trophy, national championships, he's got all the ability that you could ever want in a quarterback. The things just didn't work out here in Arizona, but the future is still bright for him. He has time to latch onto a team and lead another organization."
