Cardinals Panic Meter: Josh Sweat, Trey Benson and More

The Arizona Cardinals have numerous storylines to monitor — here's our level of panic for each one.

Dec 7, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Arizona Cardinals linebacker Josh Sweat (10) against the Los Angeles Rams at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Arizona Cardinals are halfway through preseason play, and the organization has several different storylines surrounding the team under Mike LaFleur's watch.

Today, we're pulling out the panic meter and gauging some of the hottest issues in the desert. We'll evaluate a person's situation on a scale of 1-10 of how panicked we should actually be and dive into why:

Mike LaFleur: So Far, So Good (2/10)

Oftentimes a first-year head coach can wander through the walls of a facility aimlessly with no voice or direction. It's an intimidating seat with only 32 opportunities in the world, though LaFleur has very much shown the part of a head coach during the beginning stages of his tenure.

LaFleur has had several players praise his command and attention to detail during his first preseason. Mistakes have certainly been made and we've yet to see how he handles the inevitable adversity coming his way, though so far so good when it comes to the Cardinals' head coach.

The offense looks promising while the locker room has his attention, and at this point in the process that's all you can ask for.

Carson Beck: Not Too Worried (4/10)

Beck's ribs injury in the Hall of Fame Game came as a bit of a surprise given it reportedly happened earlier in action before he finished up the game. There were no indications of the injury after and Beck practiced fully through the next week before suddenly being ruled out hours ahead of last Thursday's clash against the Raiders.

Since then, Beck hasn't thrown in practice and has already practically been ruled out ahead of Saturday's tilt against the Cowboys. The Cardinals have downplayed the significance of the injury in press conferences and are confident everything will be just fine.

So are we, though it is interesting how the injury has progressed after initially Beck was fine. The ultimate reason we're not worried is the Cardinals are very likely just protecting their rookie quarterback after he had an impressive outing.

Trey Benson: Smash The Panic Button (9/10)

Sound the alarms.

The best ability is availability, and Benson simply hasn't provided a ton of health this training camp or preseason. His meniscus recovery has seen limited participation in practice (with complete no-shows as of late) while he's unlikely to play at all in any of Arizona's final two games.

Benson's chances of making the roster are slipping away, though a placement on the PUP list could temporarily delay a tough decision with the former third-round pick if he's simply not healthy — which doesn't seem like the case at this point in time.

Bam Knight is clearly over Benson in the RB hierarchy at this point in time, and a trade/cut probably alooms whenever Benson is healthy.

Josh Sweat: A Massive Mixed Bag (5/10)

Sweat's absence this entire offseason has been a massive storyline after his reported trade request months ago. That smoke has seemed to settle, though Sweat's still not practicing with the Cardinals ahead of the regular season, and that's raised some alarms.

We're concerned, but probably for different reasons.

Sweat was placed on PUP at the beginning of training camp with a knee injury and has consistently been given a verbal green light by LaFleur for his availability to begin 2026. Many are worried Sweat is unhappy with the team still with a potential trade looming.

That's not our concern. The Cardinals, to our knowledge, are simply protecting Sweat's knee and are trusting his process in terms of preparation. He's been working out on his own and in team meetings, according to various coaches.

Our hesitation resides in the fact of Sweat's ultimate physical readiness for Week 1. Sure, players can work out on their own all they want, but the physical demands of practice are a different level — and so too are NFL games.

Will two weeks really be enough for Sweat to be acclimated and ready to go on a full workload? Everybody in the desert better hope so, because if Sweat is on a pitch count or simply doesn't look on par with other star teammates, that's only going to lead to more questions.