Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
Detroit Lions
Minnesota Vikings
Oakland Raiders
Placed on injured reserve in early September after undergoing surgery for a dislocated wrist, Cardinals running back David Johnson admitted on Friday he isn’t sure when he’ll be able to return to the field, according to Mike Jurecki of 98.7 FM.
“I hope I do get back, but I really don’t know,” Johnson said. “The wrist is a complicated limb and it’s tough to say, just because I still have this cast on. I haven’t even started rehab so I don’t know yet.”
The wording of Johnson’s answer is somewhat alarming, given that the third-year back is seemingly unsure if he’ll be allowed to play again this season. The NFL’s injured reserve rules stipulate a minimum eight-week absence, but Arizona head coach Bruce Arians said a best-case scenario for Johnson entails a Thanksgiving return.
Regardless of Johnson’s health, the Cardinals could conceivably hold him out for the rest of the year, especially if the club isn’t in playoff contention. Football Outsiders gives the Cards just a 0.7% chance of earning a postseason berth, and a trip to the playoffs looks incredibly unlikely now that quarterback Carson Palmer has joined Johnson on IR.
Johnson, 25, was arguably the league’s best offensive player in 2016 as he posted more than 2,100 yards from scrimmage and scored 20 total touchdowns. With Johnson sidelined, the Cardinals first turned to a committee of Kerwynn Williams, Andre Ellington, and Chris Johnson, but have since acquired veteran running back Adrian Peterson from the Saints.
The Cardinals’ IR has become flush with big names. Carson Palmer joined that contingent officially on Thursday. The team announced the placement of its starting quarterback on IR.
This will put Palmer out for at least eight weeks, with the Cardinals’ Christmas Eve game against the Giants being the earliest the veteran passer could return.
Palmer suffered a broken arm in the Cardinals’ loss to the Rams on Sunday, and while Bruce Arians said this week Palmer believed he could return sooner, the 15th-year signal-caller is on the shelf for the mandated eight weeks. This timeline could well mean Palmer’s season is over. And given that he didn’t announce he was returning to the Cardinals until the offseason was well underway, it shouldn’t be assumed Palmer will return to football.
The Cardinals are 3-4 and vying for playoff positioning out of a competitive division. The Rams lead the NFC West at 5-2, and the Seahawks — qualifiers for five straight NFC playoff brackets — are 4-2 with a road victory over the Rams. Arizona is now without its top quarterback, running back and offensive lineman, with David Johnson and Mike Iupati also on IR.
Arizona can bring Johnson or Iupati back earlier, but the Cardinals falling out of the race would presumably induce the team to err on the side of caution and give the younger talents a fresh start going into the 2018 season.
Palmer is under contract through next season and set to count $20.625MM against the Cardinals’ cap. He contemplated retirement after last season but opted to return. The former Heisman Trophy winner has suffered multiple severe knee injuries, the second damaging the 2014 Cardinals’ hopes. This latest malady figures to induce more deliberation from the passer about his future.
Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians has not made any decision regarding whether his career will continue past the 2017 season, sources tell Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com. Arizona will now be without quarterback Carson Palmer for several weeks (if not the rest of the year), and given that the Cardinals appear set to miss the postseason for the second consecutive season, there was some thought that Arians could hang it up after the current campaign concludes. But Arians himself tweeted that any such rumors were “news” to him, although Weinfuss added that how Arizona finishes the season could factor into Arians’ decision on 2018.
Today’s practice squad updates:
Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Ravens
Denver Broncos
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Kansas City Chiefs
New York Jets
Oakland Raiders
Philadelphia Eagles
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tennessee Titans
Today’s practice squad moves:
Arizona Cardinals
Signed: QB Mike Bercovici
Despite initial reports that Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer will undergo surgery on his broken arm and be out for eight weeks, the veteran signal caller may think he can return sooner than that. The 37 year-old reportedly told head coach Bruce Arians that he “may be able to return in 4-6 weeks”, according to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com. This news conflicts with the original prognosis, and Arians didn’t seem to doubt his QB’s feeling. “That’d be great…it depends on what the surgeon says. He is a fast healer. He’s had it broken before and basically said he was back in five.” Drew Stanton will still have to hold down the fort for the time being as the team looks to regain its footing after a 33-0 beatdown at the hands of the Rams.
Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer will undergo surgery after suffering a broken left arm in today’s game and will be sidelined for eight weeks, head coach Bruce Arians told reporters, including Craig Grialou of 98.7 FM (Twitter link).
Palmer will likely be placed on injured reserve in the coming days, and given the timeline of his injury, he could miss the remainder of the season. The NFL’s IR rules require a minimum absence of eight weeks, meaning Palmer could return for Week 16. But given Arizona’s current standing — the club is now 3-4, and had only a 2% chance of earning a postseason berth before today’s shutout loss to the Rams — the Cardinals may simply opt to shut Palmer down for the year.
Palmer, who will turn 38 years old in December, has flirted with retirement in the past, so it’s entirely possible that today’s injury represents the end of his 14-year NFL career. While Palmer hasn’t replicated his 2015 MVP-level performance this season, he’s been an above-average quarterback, as his 2017 quarterback rating, completion percentage, and yards per attempt average have been in line with his career norms. Palmer is signed through 2018, and is scheduled to earn a non-guaranteed $12.5MM base salary next season.
With Palmer out of the picture, the Cardinals will turn to Drew Stanton as their new starting quarterback. Stanton wasn’t effective on Sunday, as he completed only five of 14 attempts for 62 yards and one interception. However, entering a losing contest midway through is never an easy task, and Stanton will now get two weeks (Arizona is on bye in Week 8) to prepare before taking on the 49ers in November 5 road game.
Stanton will be the Cardinals’ starter, and he’ll be backed up by former first-round pick Blaine Gabbert, who’s been inactive for every game this season after inking a one-year pact in the spring. Arizona doesn’t currently have a quarterback on its practice squad, but the club could conceivably consider an addition in the coming days.
Bruce Arians came up with the idea for the Cardinals to acquire Adrian Peterson, doing so after his team’s blowout loss to the Eagles. Arians was driving to the team facility when the concept emerged, Lars Anderson of Bleacher Report notes. The Cardinals coach watched every Peterson carry with the Saints to make sure the 32-year-old future Hall of Famer still had enough to be a solution for an Arizona rushing attack that still ranks last in the league because of its anemic start. Arians then took the idea to Steve Keim, who called Saints GM Mickey Loomis, Anderson reports.
Immediately installed as Arizona’s starter, Peterson turned back the clock and rushed for 134 yards and two touchdowns in his Cardinals debut. The former five-time All-Pro said previously he wants to play into his late 30s, but that dialogue stopped in New Orleans. But Peterson has resumed that talking point now as a Cardinal, eyeing “four or five” more seasons.