One of the best football players EVER says COVID-19 whooped his butt ... with Larry Fitzgerald telling reporters Thursday he lost NINE POUNDS while battling the virus.
... oh, and the future Hall of Famer says he's STILL having trouble smelling and tasting things.
The Arizona Cardinals superstar tested positive for coronavirus in the last week of November ... and in his first meeting with media members since the diagnosis, Fitz explained it wasn't fun at all.
"There were a couple days I didn’t feel great," the 37-year-old said ... adding all of the reports of coronavirus deaths had him terrified.