Arizona Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald needed one catch to pass Hall of Famer Jerry Rice for the most receptions with one team in a career.

It felt as if it would never happen on Sunday against the Detroit Lions.

Finally, midway through the third quarter Josh Rosen connected with Fitzgerald for his 1,282nd reception.

He finished the day with five catches for 55 yards.

No player in @NFL history has more catches with one team than @LarryFitzgerald has in our uniform.#ProBowlVote pic.twitter.com/j4uGpfuIBU — Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) December 9, 2018

JUST IN: Larry Fitzgerald has set a new NFL record for most catches with a single team. DETAILS: https://t.co/vAWphLOYJb pic.twitter.com/wXwjx6WFvp — ABC15 Sports (@abc15sports) December 9, 2018

And there it is: With his first catch of the game – a 14-yarder from Josh Rosen – @LarryFitzgerald passed Jerry Rice & now has more catches with one team than any player in @NFL history (1,282) #DETvsAZ pic.twitter.com/E85dRtCD56 — Mark Dalton (@CardsMarkD) December 9, 2018

His first reception? It happened in September of 2004 on a flea flicker.

Josh McCown to Emmitt Smith back to McCown to Fitzgerald.</s>Arizona Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald needed one catch to pass Hall of Famer Jerry Rice for the most receptions with one team in a career.

It felt as if it would never happen on Sunday against the Detroit Lions.

Finally, midway through the third quarter Josh Rosen connected with Fitzgerald for his 1,282nd reception.

He finished the day with five catches for 55 yards.

His first reception? It happened in September of 2004 on a flea flicker.

Josh McCown to Emmitt Smith back to McCown to Fitzgerald.</s>Larry Fitzgerald may be the most under-appreciated great wide receiver in NFL history.

Sure, football fans know he’s caught a lot of passes tucked away in Arizona and can recite his big plays in 2009’s Super Bowl loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

What he’s not is a guy whose name generally comes up alongside Jerry Rice and Randy Moss when discussing the greatest receivers of all time. And he should be.

The Cardinals receiver with glue traps for hands added a stat to the NFL record Sunday to bolster his case for that pantheon, logging the most career catches by a receiver with one team.

His 14-yard grab in the third quarter Sunday against the Detroit Lions was the 1,282nd of his career, passing Rice, who caught 1,281 with the 49ers during his storied stint in San Francisco.

The feat speaks to his greatness as a wide receiver and his loyalty to the Cardinals franchise.

“You have to want to stay in a place and the organization, team, coaches have to want you to be here,” Fitzgerald told reporters. “It’s a two-way street. I’m appreciative of the Bidwill family for giving me the shot to continue to play and call Arizona home. It means a lot to me.”

Fitzgerald was part of one great playoff run with that Cardinals team that suffered heartbreak in the Super Bowl in 2009. But besides that season, he’s largely been sheltered in the obscurity of a largely mediocre Cardinals’ franchise that’s been to the playoffs in just four of his 15 NFL seasons.

While it’s admirable to show loyalty to the franchise that’s treated him well, it’s a a shame he never felt the pull to leave Arizona for a competitive franchise or a great quarterback.

Just imagine Fitzgerald teaming up with Tom Brady in New England or Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay, two quarterbacks with Hall of Fame careers largely played without Hall of Fame receiving help.

Fitzgerald did it with mostly terrible quarterbacks

Meanwhile, Fitzgerald has made his iron-clad Canton case playing with a past-his-prime Kurt Warner and a motley cast of Cardinals quarterbacks that’s included Drew Stanton, Kevin Kolb and John Skelton.

In doing so, he’s racked up the third-most catches in league history (1,286), trailing Rice and Tony Gonzalez, and the second-most receiving yards (17,108) behind Rice.

Rice’s numbers (1,549 catches for 22,895 yards) appear unassailable. Those stats combined with his three Super Bowl rings and Super Bowl MVP award put him in a class by himself.

But any conversation about the next tier of all-time greats that doesn’t include Fitzgerald isn’t a worthy one.

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• Bulls suffer worst loss in franchise history mere days after firing Fred Hoiberg</s>It took until the third quarter of Sunday’s game against the Detroit Lions, but Arizona Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald has made history. His first catch of the game was No. 1,282 of his career, which set the NFL record for the most receptions by any player for a single team.

He passes Jerry Rice, who had 1,281 catches for the San Francisco 49ers.

It was a 14-yard throw from Rosen to Fitzgerald and it also extended his streak of games with a catch to 223, which is the second-longest such streak in league history.

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.</s>Veteran wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald passed Jerry Rice's record for the most receptions for a single team.

He secured his 1,282nd career reception for the Cardinals against the Lions Sunday.

The 35-year-old Fitzgerald, who is in his 15th season with Arizona, beat Rice's mark on his first catch of the game.

He nabbed a pass from rookie quarterback Josh Rosen, who was just seven years old when Fitzgerald made his first reception with the Cardinals.

Rice spent 16 seasons in San Francisco before making stops in Oakland and Seattle. At the end of the 2004 season — his 20th in the league — Rice was planning on joining the Broncos organization for a one-year deal, but decided to retire.</s>The Arizona Cardinals star receiver passed Rice on Sunday for most catches with one team in NFL history. Fitzgerald's 14-yard catch with 5 minutes, 48 seconds left in the third quarter against the Detroit Lions gave him 1,282 catches in his 15 seasons with the Cardinals. Rice had 1,281 with the 49ers.

Fitzgerald was drafted by the Cardinals third overall in 2004. He's signed four contracts over his 15-year career with a handful of extensions added throughout.

Fitzgerald, 35, is in the last year of his current deal.</s>A few plays before, the crowd started preemptively cheering: "LAR-RY, LAR-RY."

Late in the third quarter, wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald had yet to snag a catch. He'd been targeted just once. He could hear the crowd, and he knew why they were getting impatient. History was on the line.

A few plays later, they cheered again. He made it. With 5:48 left in the third quarter, Fitzgerald became all-time.

It was his 1,282nd catch with the Cardinals. No player in NFL history has had more receptions with one team.

Fitzgerald's 14-yard reception set the league record and extended his streak to 224 games with a reception. Setting the record in front of the home crowd was one highlight for the team in the 17-3 loss to the Lions. Fitzgerald hadn't yet processed what the record meant in the context of a loss.

"I don't know. My mind is not there," Fitzgerald said. "I am just frustrated with the way things turned out. It is just frustrating."

Fitzgerald passed Jerry Rice, who had 1,281 catches with the 49ers over 16 years. He ended the day with five catches on nine targets for 55 yards. His other four catches all came in the fourth quarter.

"Detroit actually just dealt with him pretty aggressively pretty early," quarterback Josh Rosen said. "They kind of laid off of that in the second half, which is why he started to get his catches. They took him away and tried to make a couple of plays with some other guys, and it didn't work out, but it did down the stretch."

Fitzgerald was targeted just once in the first half. Detroit often double-teamed him. Lions coach Matt Patricia thinks Fitzgerald can never be totally shut down, so they just wanted to contain him for as long as possible.

"Coach (Paul) Pasqualoni and that defense, third downs, I got bracketed quite a few times and they had some over-the-top coverage," Fitzgerald said. "They had a good game plan for us."

As the Cardinals dropped another game, Fitzgerald was quiet after the game. The future Hall of Famer is collecting records, but he would trade them for some wins.

"When I am done, I think I can look back and reflect on it," Fitzgerald said on passing Rice. "Now is not the time. Being 3-10 is not a good feeling. I don't feel celebratory."

There were a few things he could still appreciate in the moment. It's meaningful to Fitzgerald to spend all that time with the same team, and he knows this particular record is a testament to that. He said he's grateful for the chance to keep playing, for the coaches and front office that keep him there, and for the fans that keep supporting him.

Plus, the game gave him a chance to see more of what the other wide receivers can do.

Rookie Trent Sherfield led all receivers with 77 yards on five catches. He was targeted seven times, including one the team would like to take back.

On third and 14 in the third quarter, Rosen looked for Sherfield to his right. Darius Slay undercut the route, intercepted Rosen and ran it back 67-yards for the Lions' first touchdown of the day.

Sherfield said his chemistry with Rosen has been getting better. At that point, Rosen had already connected to Sherfield twice on third down for conversions. Sherfield's shortest catch of the day was still good for 11 yards.

"I thought he stepped up," Wilks said. "He came up with some key catches for us."

Sherfield wasn't the only undrafted rookie stepping up. Jalen Tolliver saw his first NFL action, and caught both passes thrown his way for a total of 22 yards. His first reception at the pro level was a 10-yard pickup on third down. J.J. Nelson added 43 yards on three catches.

Even in the loss, Fitzgerald was pleased with what he saw out of the young receivers.

"I was really happy to see those guys perform," Fitzgerald said. "Right now, when you are eliminated from the playoffs, that is all you can do is just build. Every single day you go out to work. ... They come to work and really give it their best. It matters to them, they care. We are just trying to hold a standard."
• None Cardinals fail to build on momentum, flounder offensively in loss to Lions
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• None Instant replay: Cardinals' offense fails to show up in lackluster loss to Lions</s>Sunday brought another loss for the Cardinals in a season filled with them, but there was a memorable moment before the Lions sealed their 17-3 win.

Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald‘s first catch of the day gave him 1,282 for his career and that moved him past Jerry Rice for first place on the list of most catches with one team over the course of a career. Fitzgerald said after the game that he didn’t feel “celebratory” because of the loss, but the Lions were certainly in the mood to give the wideout some applause.

Lions cornerback Nevin Lawson said he’d tell his kids that he got to face Fitzgerald and running back LeGarrette Blount called him one of the “special people” in the world. Cornerback Darius Slay called him “amazing” and cornerback Quandre Diggs also praised his opponent.

“I wish they stopped the game. He needs that,” Diggs said, via ESPN.com. “Man, he’s the man. He’s the man, brother. Any time you can share the field with a Hall of Famer and anybody so humble as him, man, it’s a blessing. I’m just thankful to be here and to be able to compete against guys like that.”

There aren’t many reasons to watch the Cardinals this season, but the chance to see Fitzgerald play wide receiver is right at the top of the list.</s>TEMPE, Ariz. — The Arizona Cardinals have double-digit losses for the first time since 2012.

Just when the Cardinals looked as if they truly had improved — with a win at Green Bay — they fell flat in a 17-3 home loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

That left them at 3-10, tied with the San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders for the worst record in the NFL and back in the thick of the battle for next year’s No. 1 draft pick. Unless the Cardinals can win one of their final three games — at Atlanta, at home against the Los Angeles Rams and at Seattle, Arizona will match the worst record since the franchise moved from St. Louis to Arizona in 1988.

The 2000 Cardinals finished 3-13, with Vince Tobin fired seven games into the season and replaced by Dave McGinnis. The franchise didn’t have a winning record again until a surprising run to the Super Bowl in 2008.

First-year coach Steve Wilks indicated he’s balancing giving young players a long look while still playing to win. He said he’s emphasizing playing for pride.

“Very important. That’s the word that we are using from a pride standpoint,” he said. “You may say, ‘You’re not playing for anything,’ but you’re playing for pride. These guys in here are professionals, and they want to win just like the coaches. So, we have to find a way to turn this thing around this week and go to Atlanta and get a win. ”

Wilks said he watched tape of the game twice Monday, and was encouraged to find the team still played hard.

“I wanted to go back again because I wanted to see certain things,” he said. “I thought the guys played hard, and that’s what I told them. We gave ourselves a chance to win; we just didn’t finish.”

Wilks thought the defence played well, until Detroit’s game-clinching 75-yard touchdown drive, aided by missed tackles and Arizona penalties.

The Lions’ plan was to take Larry Fitzgerald out of the game with persistent double-teams. So it was the third quarter before he caught his first pass, which put him ahead of Jerry Rice for most receptions for one team. He ended up with five to put him at 1,286 for his career.

“It is a two-way street in this business,” he said of the record. “You have to want to stick with a place, organization, or team and the coaches have to want you to be here. It is a two-way street. I am appreciative of the opportunity and to the Bidwill family for giving me the shot to continue to play. I call Arizona home and it means a lot to me.”

But Fitzgerald really wasn’t in any mood to discuss his latest landmark.

“When I am done, I think I can look back and reflect on it,” he said. “Now is not the time. Being 3-10 is not a good feeling. I don’t feel celebratory.”

Now Fitzgerald will have to endure the remainder of what looks to be the worst of his 15 seasons in Arizona. It also may well be his last, and not at all the way he wanted to go out.</s>Fitzgerald caught five of nine targets for 55 yards during Sunday's 17-3 loss to Detroit.

Fitzgerald made history Sunday, passing Hall-of-Fame wideout Jerry Rice for the most receptions (1,286) for any one team in NFL history. However, the veteran nonetheless had trouble taking advantage of a plus matchup against a weak Lions secondary. Most of his struggles are connected to the uninspiring play of rookie quarterback Josh Rosen, though. Since it doesn't seem wise to expect Rosen to pick up his play anytime soon, it may not be wise to look to Fitzgerald for reliable production either. After all, he's only topped 50 receiving yards in two other games this season.
In American football, Larry Fitzgerald of the Arizona Cardinals passes Jerry Rice to become the all-time receptions leader with one team.