default-cbs-image

If the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game was to somehow get canceled for the second year in a row, that news probably wouldn’t bother Larry Fitzgerald at all.  

The Cardinals receiver seemed less than thrilled on Thursday after the NFL announced that Arizona would be kicking off the 2017 preseason with a game against the Cowboys in Canton, Ohio. And by “less than thrilled,” I mean he called playing in the Hall of Fame game the “worst news ever.”

This is a guy who spent the 2011 season catching passes from John Skelton and Kevin Kolb, so if he’s calling something the “worst news ever,” it’s probably the worst news ever. 

As Fitzgerald noted, he’ll have to go through one extra week of training camp and play in one extra preseason game, which is pretty much the opposite of what any player wants to do at the age of 33. Fitzgerald was actually mulling retirement less than a month ago, so it’s probably a good thing the NFL didn’t make the Hall of Fame Game announcement then, or he might’ve said goodbye forever. 

Of course, “playing” in the Hall of Fame Game won’t be all bad news for Fitzgerald, and that’s mainly because he likely won’t play at all. Generally, veterans are lucky if they play one series in this game. On the other hand, maybe the Cardinals will force Fitzgerald to play since they’re basically using him to promote the game. 

On the plus side of things, Fitzgerald will get to see a former teammate inducted into the Hall of Fame (Kurt Warner), and it looks like there’s a good chance he’ll be able to score free tickets to the WGC Bridgestone, the Akron-based golf tournament that he mentioned in his tweet. 

If you think about it, Larry, it’s almost like a week-long vacation, and everyone loves a vacation. Just maybe not to Ohio.