The Facts:
When Bruce Arians came in to Indianapolis as offensive coordinator before the 2012 season, one of his goals was to make Reggie Wayne the impact player he had always been. Now that Arians is head coach of the Cardinals, he has the same plans for Fitzgerald. “As a receiver, you can’t hand it to them, you have to throw it to them,” Arians said. “They can double-cover him, and you don’t throw it to him if he is double-covered and someone else is single-covered. You’ve got to take what is there as a quarterback, but you do have to get him the ball because he is such a tremendous talent."
Reported by ArizonaCardinals.com
Fantasy Football Diehards Line:
Wayne was held to just 75 catches, less than 1,000 yards, four touchdowns in 2011 -- albeit playing with a less than ideal situation at QB. Sound familiar? It should. Fitzgerald finished with similar totals this past season -- also playing with a bit of a handicap at QB, finishing with 71 catches, 798 yards and four touchdowns. Arians believes the key for Wayne -- QB play notwithstanding, was moving him around the field. “When I first met with Reggie, Reggie had been on the left side for 10 years. The first day of spring I put him over there on the right, and he looked like he had palsy. I said, ‘It’ll come. You have to retrain your body here. Wait until I put you in the slot.’ There was buy-in. ...” Apparently so. Wayne had 106 catches for 1,355 yards and five touchdowns in 2012. The good news? As AZCardinals.com's Darren Urban notes, the Cardinals have been moving Fitzgerald around for a while now, just to get him open. One issue, of course: Arizona doesn't have an Andrew Luck on their horizon. Still, at least Arians realizes what he has and is looking to take advantage of Fitzgerald's unique talents (QB willing).
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