The Arizona Cardinals could begin the season with 27th overall pick Darius Robinson on injured reserve after he went down with a calf injury during practice this week.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport on X, “#AZCardinals first-round DL Darius Robinson suffered a calf injury that is considered a multi-week injury after scans, sources say. Possible he could begin the season on Injured Reserve. If so, the earliest return would be Week 5.”
#AZCardinals first-round DL Darius Robinson suffered a calf injury that is considered a multi-week injury after scans, sources say. Possible he could begin the season on Injured Reserve. If so, the earliest return would be Week 5. pic.twitter.com/FhyKihnhNR
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 24, 2024
If Robinson is to go on injured reserve, he would join outside linebacker BJ Ojulari, who will be out for the season after tearing his ACL earlier this offseason. The NFL also announced yesterday that wide receiver Zay Jones will be suspended for the first five games for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.
On the team’s first official depth chart released earlier this month, Robinson was listed as a backup defensive tackle behind free agent addition Bilal Nichols. This interior defensive line room is pretty deep with Nichols and other free-agent signees Justin Jones and Khyiris Tonga, as well as returnees Roy Lopez, Dante Stills, and L.J. Collier.
However, Robinson was always expected to get major playing time and potentially start by the time the season rolled around because of how well he played in camp and his limited snaps in the preseason.
“The dude is a freak,” Collier said on Robinson (via AZCardinals.com). “I feel like the kid’s going to ball this year. Arguably might be Defensive Rookie of the Year if he stays on the track that I think he’s going to be on.”
The 6-foot-5, 286-pound Robinson previously played five seasons at the University of Missouri. In 43 total collegiate games, Robinson recorded 112 tackles, 13 sacks and forced one fumble, including 43 tackles and 8.5 sacks in his final year.
The Cardinals head to Denver to take on the Broncos in their preseason finale on Sunday (Aug. 25) at 1:30 p.m. MST on CBS.
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Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau
