TEMPE — The Arizona Cardinals are signing 40-year-old quarterback Josh Johnson off the Cincinnati Bengals practice squad as starter Gardner Minshew undergoes tests on his throwing elbow, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Monday.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Minshew is “feared” to have torn the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow and could miss the rest of the season, according to Arizona Sports.
Coach Mike LaFleur said there is a “possibility, for sure” that Minshew misses Sunday’s home game against the Los Angeles Rams. “We’re not practicing tomorrow, so we’ll know more about Gardner, which will lead us into our plan for Wednesday,” LaFleur told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo.
Minshew took a hit to his throwing arm late in the first half of Sunday’s 17-3 loss at Seattle when Dante Fowler Jr. reached him mid-throw. He returned and finished 21-for-30 for 166 yards.
Rookie Carson Beck, the only other quarterback on the roster, is in line to make his NFL debut if Minshew cannot play. Minshew had just taken over as the starter from Jacoby Brissett, whom Arizona traded to Baltimore.
Johnson’s arrival makes the Cardinals his 15th NFL team in 14 seasons, Arizona Sports reported. He has played in 50 NFL games with 11 starts and played three games for the 2021 New York Jets, when LaFleur was their offensive coordinator.
The Rams will also be short-handed: Coach Sean McVay said All-Pro receiver Puka Nacua is expected to miss at least a month with a knee sprain and turf toe.
Sources: Arizona Sports, Arizona Sports, Arizona Sports. Thee Arizona Times uses AI-assisted reporting reviewed against the sources listed.
Photo: Sgt. Andres Lugo / Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.
