Cardinals Mailbag: Could Arizona Make a Surprise Move Before Week 1?

ARIZONA — Just one preseason game stands in the way of the Arizona Cardinals and tough roster decisions.

The Cardinals, along with the rest of the league, are due to cut their roster down to 53 at 3:00 PM AZ time on Sunday – which will see almost half of their current players sent to waivers.

Thanks for all the questions, as always. Let's get into it:

How likely are the Cardinals to trade at roster cutdowns? - Ed

This isn't completely out of the realm of possibility.

I'm not personally buying any of the Josh Sweat trade chatter. I think it's far too early in the season to part ways with one of their best players.

However, a quarterback trade wouldn't be completely out of the picture. The Cardinals have a fairly thick room with Jacoby Brissett set to be the starter and Gardner Minshew/Carson Beck also in the mix. Arizona just might want to depart from Minshew and have Beck waiting in the wings if they want to make a change.

Trey Benson would have been a prime candidate here before his release.

How likely? I'd say they might not be looking to acquire talent at the moment. Maybe a 3 out of 10 on the scale.

Jeremiyah Love Week 1? - Charles

I've always been pretty confident Love would rebound in time for Week 1, though I am just a tad skeptical on his full availability/workload.

Love seems to be progressing well after suffering a (reported) high ankle sprain in Las Vegas. Make what you want of him working out barefoot in Green Bay after carrying loads of pizza on the team plane for rookie duties.

I do think Love will be ready to go, though the Cardinals will probably want to be smart on working him back into the mix with a pitch count in Week 1.

Between now and Week 1, has the front office shown they are looking for good fillers for this lackluster defense? I get it's preseason, but it feels we're continuing where we left off - Ryan

This sort of ties into the trade question above, though I don't think the Cardinals are exactly positioned as buyers entering the season.

Defensively, they just want to see their unit healthy. Arizona barely played their starters in preseason, and while Nick Rallis is considered to have a short leash in 2026, he does have an opportunity to wipe the slate clean and start anew without Jonathan Gannon in the building.

Arizona opted to mostly upgrade the offensive side of the ball this offseason. It's a bet they're hoping pays off under the offensive-minded LaFleur.

With some struggles from Kedon in the preseason and injury to Tip Reiman, how much 11 personnel will we see from Arizona early in the season? - Blake

I do think with Wilson, Harrison and Bourne in the mix we were likely to see plenty of 11 personnel from the Cardinals, but oddly enough I'm not sure Reiman's injury will really prevent LaFleur from wanting to run those coveted multi-TE sets.

Reiman's undoubtedly their best in-line blocker at the position, though Teagan Quitoriano is fairly strong in that department. It's not a one-for-one fill in, though the Cardinals (under my belief) still would like to get heavy.

Even the Rams' usage of 11 personnel last year was slightly above the league average, so if LaFleur carries over any of Sean McVay's philosophy, we should still see it often.

Two positives that nobody is talking about right now going into Week 1? - Bryan

Bryan, the Cardinals' offense has — operationally — looked sound and solid this camp/preseason. Has it been perfect?

Not quite, though when all three levels of the offense are operating at a high level, regardless of the quarterback, that's an incredibly encouraging sign that LaFleur's offense is not only digestible but effective, too.

Another positive has been the uptick in health of Arizona's starters. The Cardinals have recently gotten back Garrett Williams and Josh Sweat while Walter Nolen III has managed to stay healthy. The Cardinals need all hands on deck when it comes to their defense, and that's exactly what they're getting as preseason comes to a close.

Better chance James Conner gets cut or traded? - JDUBZ

JDUBZ, that's an excellent question.

Nobody really knows what's going on with James Conner right now. He hit injured reserve after suffering a foot injury in Week 3 last season and hasn't played a snap of 11 v 11 football since. He's been mostly present at practice but only participating in individual drills.

The Cardinals could simply be keeping their veteran running back healthy while others suggest Conner might not be ready to play just yet. Arizona's done a great job of keeping their intentions sealed.

To answer your question, Conner probably doesn't have a lot of value in terms of a trade, but the Cardinals would like to get something of value in return if he's going to leave. That being said, Conner's earned the right and respect from the organization to be released if that's his wish.

I think with three running backs already in the mix, Conner has a slightly better chance of being cut than traded — especially since that would allow him to choose his own team.

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