Veteran wideout looking to land with Arizona Cardinals
By Jim Koch
Former Cleveland Brown Greg Little spent last season out of the NFL, but is now attempting a comeback with the Arizona Cardinals
Among all of the youngsters running around at the Arizona Cardinals’ rookie minicamp this weekend is an experienced veteran. Greg Little, a former 2011 second-round draft pick of the Cleveland Browns, wants back into the NFL. The wide receiver, a product of the University of North Carolina, has been having trouble sustaining the success he enjoyed early on in the league.
After three fairly-productive campaigns as a member of Cleveland’s “Dawg Pound”, Little was released by the club in May of 2014. Ever since, the now 28-year old’s career has been on a downslide. Little appeared in six games for the Cincinnati Bengals following his departure from the Browns, and also had cups of coffee with the Oakland Raiders and Buffalo Bills.
The wideout put up decent numbers during his time in Cleveland. As a rookie in ’11, Little hauled in 61 balls for 709 yards and two touchdowns. His statistics dropped slightly in 2012 (53-647-4), and then took a little bit more of a dive in 2013 (41-465-2).
Following the ’13 campaign, the Browns elected to part ways with Little, and there were apparently several reasons for the breakup. For one, the pass-catcher had difficulty hanging on to the football. The issue reared it’s ugly head from the beginning, when Little dropped 14 balls during his inaugural season.
An inability to get into the end zone has also plagued Little. Despite his tremendous size, the 6’3″, 225 pounder failed in being the red-zone scoring threat that Cleveland envisioned when they drafted him. Only eight of his 161 career receptions have resulted in six points.
There have also been minor character issues in the receiver’s past. Little was suspended for the entire 2010 season in college for receiving gifts from agents. There were also traffic violations when the veteran was with the Browns, including one for doing 127 mph in a 55 mph zone while drag-racing (and ultimately totalling) his Audi.
Whether Little can find a home with the Cardinals may depend on how many wideouts the club decides to keep. Larry Fitzgerald, J.J. Nelson and Christian Kirk are shoo-ins. Free agent signee Brice Butler and 2017 third-round pick Chad Williams are also just about guaranteed to be on the final roster.
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Arizona has carried six wide receivers before, and could certainly do so again. Adding someone with experience would not be a bad thing for the position. Little could very well be that guy.