METAIRIE, La. -- Tim Hightower has never held back when it comes to expressing how grateful he is for his second NFL life with the New Orleans Saints.
That has been one of the best things about the 30-year-old running back’s remarkable comeback over the past year, after he had been out of the NFL for three-plus seasons because of a torn ACL and an infection that originally went undiagnosed.
Hightower has shared stories such as not being able to sleep following a breakthrough performance last season, how touched he was that other players going through similar rehabs reached out to him for advice and how much it meant for him to return to play this season at Carolina, where he suffered the knee injury in 2011.
So, naturally, Hightower didn’t hold back Thursday when asked what it will mean for him to return for the first time to Arizona, where he began his career as a fifth-round draft pick with the Cardinals from 2008-2010.
“If I could try to put it in a few words ... it means everything,” Hightower said. “Man, I want to win every game, but this game is special for me. This is where it all started for me. This is the place where it all began. So it’s special.”
Hightower said it’s not necessarily a desire to prove the Cardinals wrong for trading him to the Washington Redskins in 2011, since he has “positive” feelings toward the fan base, the franchise, ownership and teammates who are still there.
But, Hightower admitted, “I always have kind of a chip on my shoulder.”
When asked if he has the desire to go back and give the kind of performance that says, “Hey, remember me?” Hightower said, “For me, I think I’ll have that for the rest of my career.”
“I could say no, but I think I’d be lying to a degree,” Hightower said. “Yeah, there’s a little bit of you want to do well this week, because these are the people who brought you in. They saw something in you, they saw enough in you to give you an opportunity. You don’t know how they currently feel about you, which really doesn’t matter to me. But to be able to put another impression out there, that’s always a positive thing.”
Hightower has 453 rushing yards, 178 receiving yards and two touchdowns this season, most of which has come over the past seven weeks, since he began splitting time with fellow veteran Mark Ingram.
Last season, Hightower was terrific as a late-season injury replacement for Ingram. Over the final four games in 2015, he had a total of 327 rushing yards, 129 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
Hightower is no stranger to breakouts, though. His first came as a rookie in 2008, when he scored 10 touchdowns in the regular season and three more in the playoffs to help lead Arizona to the Super Bowl.
“I remember 2008, sitting with my family, getting a phone call from the Arizona Cardinals. And I had no clue who the Arizona Cardinals were, really. I didn’t watch the Arizona Cardinals, I really didn’t have any interaction with the Arizona Cardinals,” said Hightower, who said he misses the community “first and foremost.”
“I still go back and train in the offseason. I still go places and people say, ‘Hey, I remember that NFC championship run,’” Hightower said. “Calais Campbell was in my draft class, Larry Fitzgerald, Fitz, was a big mentor of mine. He really kind of taught me how to practice.
“As a young guy, I was fortunate to learn from guys like him, Edgerrin James, Karlos Dansby, Anquan Boldin, Kurt Warner. I was very fortunate. You see how hard they work, you see their attention to detail. And it kind of sets the tone for you and your career. Kind of the base that if you want to achieve some of those things and have that kind of success, this is the standard you gotta measure up to.”