Players can be forgotten quickly in the NFL. When a player misses time with an injury, there is no guarantee that their spot will be waiting for them when they return.
Arizona Cardinals defender B.J. Ojulari may have lost his spot already.
B.J. Ojulari misses second day of minicamp with lingering ACL injury
There was so much promise for B.J. Ojulari. When the Arizona Cardinals drafted B.J. Ojulari out of LSU in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft, he was viewed as a developmental edge rusher with the explosive tools to become a true threat to opposing quarterbacks. Things haven't exactly panned out in his first two seasons in the league.
As a rookie, Ojulari showed flashes of high-level play for the Cardinals. He appeared in all 17 games, tallying 20 pressures and four sacks. His rookie season was a building block for an impactful career.
Then, before his second season even began, his career was derailed. Ojulari suffered an ACL injury in training camp that would keep him sidelined for the entirety of the 2025 season.
That injury still has Ojulari sidelined as the Cardinals kick off mandatory minicamp this offseason. Cardinals insider Darren Urban reported that Ojulari has been kept off of the field for the first two days of the team's mandatory minicamp as he continues to recover from his knee injury. Urban noted that, "coach Jonathan Gannon said the outside linebacker is doing well in a one-day-at-a-time mindset."
As Ojulari waits on the sidelines, he may be watching his chance at a starting spot slip away. The Cardinals added loads of talent to their defensive front this offseason, including edge rushers like Josh Sweat and Jordan Burch. The team also re-signed Baron Browning after trading for him last season. The edge group has quickly become much more crowded than it was just a few months ago.
Josh Sweat will command one of the two starting spots on the edge. Zaven Collins, Baron Browning, Jordan Burch, and B.J. Ojulari will compete for the other. As Ojulari continues to sit out, those other players are gaining a leg up over him in the position battle.
B.J. Ojulari's career is far from over. He should be ready to go by the time the 2025 season kicks off. If he can build on what he did in his rookie year, Ojulari could still become an impactful player for the Cardinals. But his recovery is becoming more urgent with every day that he misses.