Stateline, NV -- At the Caesars Celebrity Pro Am on Wednesday at the Edgewood Tahoe Resort, in anticipation of the 2026 American Century Championship (July 10-12 on NBC, the NBC Sports Network, and Peacock), I got the chance to speak with Charles Woodson and Larry Fitzgerald about several topics near and dear.
For Woodson, that was his son, Charles Woodson Jr., who recently followed in his father's footsteps and committed to the Michigan Wolverines. Junior chose Michigan over the Kentucky Wildcats, Texas A&M Aggies, Ole Miss Rebels, Florida State Seminoles, and Oregon Ducks.
For Fitzgerald, that was asking about his only NFL home for 17 years, the Arizona Cardinals, and the chance they start former Georgia Bulldogs and Miami Hurricanes quarterback and 2026 third-round draft pick Carson Beck this fall. Jacoby Brissett's ongoing holdout with the team over his contract may force Beck into the QB1 role right away as a rookie in The Valley.
Charles Woodson on why his son chose Michigan over SEC options
Obviously, Charles Woodson Jr. was likely always going to don the Maize and Blue. Charles Woodson Sr. is the only purely defensive player to ever win the Heisman Trophy, though it should be noted he had 301 return yards and a touchdown during "The Game" against the Ohio State Buckeyes, too, during his award-winning 1997 season. His Wolverines legacy is as secure as anyone's.
Still, when I asked what drew Junior to Ann Arbor besides family allegiance, Woodson gave me a thoughtful answer about Kyle Whittingham and his coaching staff, particularly defensive coordinator Jay Hill and safeties coach Tyler Stockton.
"I think for him, man, he's all about people he can grow comfortable with. Coach Whit, Coach Hill, and Coach Stockton, when they met him, he felt comfortable. And if he's comfortable, then he's ready to roll. I think that's the difference," Woodson said.
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Larry Fitzgerald believes in Carson Beck if he ends up Cardinals QB1
Fitzgerald believes you can't substitute the big-game experience Beck has, whether in Athens or Miami Gardens, from his collegiate career. That makes Fitz a proponent of Beck in a pinch if he has to step in and start off the rip.
"You know, he's old, and he's seasoned. He's played in big-time games from Georgia to Miami. He played in 15, 16 games last year at the highest level. He made big-time plays in the CFP. You know, you can never take that for granted," Fitzgerald said.
"In terms of how he did in the spring. I wasn't there. I didn't watch any of the practice. I didn't see how that progressed. I just hope whoever the best option is takes the lead and helps us win as many games as we possibly can."
Ask those in the Dawgs locker room during his time in Georgia, and ask those in the Canes' locker room from the last campaign, and you'll get two very different assessments on Beck. As Fitz notes, though, Beck has intangibles, playing in NFL-sized stadiums for both teams during the postseason. He won more at Miami, but Beck wasn't far off from a CFP berth in 2023 during the four-team field era. Everywhere he went, Beck was a winning leader.
We'll see if that parlays into an immediate chance to do it again in the pros soon enough.
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