Jeremiyah Love, the Arizona Cardinals’ rookie running back, is now at serious risk of missing the team’s season opener. He’s reportedly dealing with a high-ankle sprain, an injury he picked up in their 27-14 preseason win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday. This is a tough blow for a guy expected to be a huge piece right out of the gate.
The Play That Changes Everything, For Now
ESPN’s Adam Schefter broke the news, reporting that Love is now unlikely to play for the rest of the preseason. Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur said Saturday they’d evaluate Love further next week, but didn’t dive into specifics on the injury. Still, the team is apparently hopeful he’ll be good to go for that Week 1 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers on September 13. The injury itself happened when Love made a catch near the goal line in the middle of the field, getting brought down pretty awkwardly. He had actually played 23 snaps in that game, rushing for 58 yards on 11 carries and adding 14 receiving yards on three catches.
Why Was He Out There So Long?
A lot of people are asking why a No. 3 overall pick was playing so much in a preseason game, right? LaFleur addressed that, saying he wanted to get his new running back some experience. “It’s a rookie that hadn’t played,” LaFleur stated on Sunday. He even hinted that he knew how many games certain guys would play this preseason for specific reasons. Love was a beast at Notre Dame, racking up 1,372 rushing yards and 21 total touchdowns with the Fighting Irish, and even finished third in Heisman Trophy voting. LaFleur mentioned Love’s confidence went “through the roof” after his third drive in that game. It’s just a brutal break that he got “somewhat rolled up on” during the last play.
The Cardinals, coming off a rough 3-14 season last year before LaFleur took over, are clearly counting on Love to play a huge role in their offense. Whether his NFL career actually gets started on time, though, is the million-dollar question now.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
Leave a Reply