Two Arizona Cardinals players are sidelined with injuries
By Jim Koch
Arizona Cardinals starting guard J.R. Sweezy and defensive tackle Rashard Lawrence will be sidelined for at least three weeks
Over the first five weeks of the 2020 NFL campaign, the Arizona Cardinals have sustained more than their fair share of injuries. Just last Sunday, star edge-rusher Chandler Jones suffered a torn biceps versus the New York Jets that will sideline him for the rest of this season. Unfortunately, the Cards string of bad luck did not end there.
On Saturday, Arizona announced that two more members of their roster have been placed on the club’s injured-reserve list. On a positive note, it appears that neither starting right guard J.R. Sweezy nor backup defensive tackle Rashard Lawrence will be lost for the year. The designation does mean, however, that both players will be out for at least the next three weeks.
Like Jones, Sweezy was also hurt during the matchup with the Jets. The 2019 free agent acquisition, who played in all 16 games during his first campaign with the Cardinals, is dealing with a bum elbow. Sweezy had played more than 90% of the offensive snaps with the squad in 2020 before the clash with New York last weekend.
Lawrence, a rookie who was selected during the fourth round of this past April’s draft, was injured against the Jets as well. The 22-year old out of Louisiana State University is nursing a strained calf muscle. Lawrence, who has been a part of the Cards defensive-line rotation, has registered three tackles thus far in a part-time role with the team.
Replacing Sweezy in the starting lineup will be Justin Murray, a 27-year old who just signed an extension with Arizona earlier this month. The 6’5, 304 pounder came to the organization in September of 2019 after spending time with five different professional franchises. Murray started 12 contests for the Cardinals at right tackle last fall after Marcus Gilbert suffered a season-ending knee injury just days before the opener.