Injuries ended up being the story of the Arizona Cardinals‘ second preseason game last Thursday. That includes an ankle injury for third-overall pick Jeremiyah Love.
In hindsight, that’s led to some criticism of Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur, and how much Love was used. He had 11 carries for 58 yards, while also snagging 3 receptions for another 11 yards. That’s 14 total touches in a preseason game, leaving opportunities for Love to get banged up.
Despite that, LaFleur defended the decision making. After all, Love is a rookie learning a new offense and adjusting to a new level of football.
“I mean, it’s a rookie that hadn’t played,” LaFleur said. “One that, not to share too many secrets because I haven’t said it with the players yet, but you know, that was how it was going to be in terms of how many games these guys were gonna play, for what we were looking for. So, that’s what the thought was.”
The Cardinals were criticized by some for using the third-overall pick on a running back. Having given Love a $53 million rookie contract, it’s clear they intend for him to be a centerpiece for the offense moving forward.
The Latest Injury Update on Arizona Cardinals RB Jeremiyah Love
GettyArizona Cardinals RB Jeremiyah Love
Initially, there had been optimism about Jeremiyah Love following Thursday’s preseason game. However, over the weekend, the Arizona Cardinals seemed to start changing their tune.
Love is now going to be out for the next week with what’s being described as a sore ankle. That means the rookie won’t be available for the Cardinals’ next preseason game on Saturday, August 22nd, against the Dallas Cowboys.
“He was in great spirits, even Friday,” LaFleur said. “But we’ll keep him out this week as we let it heal. So, a little bit more sore than we were anticipating.”
Along with Love, the Cardinals have veteran running back James Conner, who has yet to participate in 11-on-11 drills as he recovers from a major foot/ankle injury that he suffered in Week 3 last year. Meanwhile, Trey Benson has been dealing with a knee issue. The Cardinals also added Tyler Allgeier this offseason, potentially putting a heavy workload on his shoulders.
When asked about getting Love ready for the start of the regular season, LaFleur declined to look into the future. Instead, the focus was on this weekend and practice.
“This week and then we’ll kind of go from there and reevaluate,” LaFleur said. “Honestly, all the focus is on August 15th, Saturday. Here we are in our Tempe block (of practice). We’ll kind of reevaluate going into next week. But he will be out this week.”
The Cardinals Suffered Several Key Injuries
GettyArizona Cardinals offensive lineman Chase Bisontis
While Jeremiyah Love was arguably the biggest name to suffer an injury in the Cardinals’ last preseason game, he wasn’t the only key piece to go down.
Fellow rookie, offensive lineman Chase Bisontis, had his season cut short. A torn MCL, with his ACL remaining intact, is going to cost him his first NFL season, as he now heads to injured reserve. That’s a major loss for an offensive line the Cardinals were hoping could improve this season.
“(Chase) will be out for a good amount of time, if not the whole year,” LaFleur said. “Sucks for him. Always think about the player first. Sucks for the Cardinals too, He’s a good player but more importantly you hate it for the player.”
Beyond that, the Cardinals also sent tight end Jameson Geers and linebacker Austin Keys to IR following Thursday’s preseason game. It appears Geers was dealing with an arm injury, while it’s unclear what the injury Keys had was.
The Cardinals have preseason games on August 22nd against the Cowboys and on August 28th against the Green Bay Packers. Then, they’ll hope to be healthy for the start of the regular season on September 13th when they take on the Los Angeles Chargers.
Like HEAVY's content?Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Cardinals HC Mike LaFleur Defends Controversial Jeremiyah Love Decision appeared first on HEAVY.