Who is left for Carson Beck to throw the ball to?

TEMPE — Arizona Cardinals rookie quarterback Carson Beck is walking into a tough-looking situation for his NFL debut.

Starting quarterback Gardner Minshew is undergoing testing on his right elbow, but the Cardinals reportedly fear he could miss the rest of the season with a torn UCL he suffered Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks.

Meanwhile, for the second straight week, the Cardinals have lost a wide receiver to a season-ending injury.

Last week, Kendrick Bourne went on injured reserve with a fractured tibia. On Sunday, Michael Wilson suffered a small fracture in his neck.

What else could go wrong?

Well, if Beck debuts this week, he will face the Los Angeles Rams with Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald coming for him at State Farm Stadium. Cardinals center Hjalte Froholdt, who has not missed a game since he joined the team in 2023, is in concussion protocol.

What a mess, but the Cardinals have to field a team and get back out there with a plan they feel gives their rookie quarterback a shot to make something happen, as difficult as that will be.

“Obviously just when you lose a talented player like Mike Wilson, I mean, that changes what you have out there,” LaFleur said. “So obviously it’s just opportunities for guys to step up again. No one’s going to feel sorry for us. I certainly don’t. I’m excited for the challenge that’s in front of us. I know people aren’t going to give us a shot. We’re not worried about that. We’re going to go out and put a great week of prep in and go shoot.”

Beck has been the backup quarterback for a week, previously sitting in the emergency third quarterback role.

Arizona stuck with Jacoby Brissett as the starter for eight games before benching him for Minshew. The Cardinals traded Brissett last week to the Baltimore Ravens as they took advantage of an opportunity to add draft capital after Minshew’s heroics in Dallas.

What a difference a week makes, as the Cardinals are having discussions about how to add another quarterback to be Beck’s potential backup.

“It’s not like it’s the difference between a wing-T offense and a spread offense, you know?” LaFleur said when asked about changing the gameplan. “I mean, we’re going to do a lot of similar stuff. And a lot of the stuff that Carson likes and is good at is the same stuff that Gardner likes.” 

Who is Carson Beck going to throw the ball to?

In regard to Beck’s potential targets, tight end Trey McBride is going to be his safety net, but defenses know that. He leads the league with 73 receptions.

The Cardinals as a team have 232 receptions this year, and 44% of them have come from players either on injured reserve, set to be placed on IR or who have been traded (Marvin Harrison Jr.).

That leaves Beck with a wide receiver corps of the following:

• Simi Fehoko
• Reggie Virgil (rookie)
• Devin Duvernay
• Harrison Wallace III (rookie)
• Zay Jones (practice squad)
• James Proche II (practice squad)
• Shedrick Jackson (practice squad)

That group has a combined eight receptions this season.

“I mean, the bodies are there,” LaFleur said. “It’s obviously a setback in terms of that receiver room. It’s a setback for this unit. But it’s a setup for success for these guys. Let’s go, next guy up. There’s gonna be guys that are gonna be getting opportunities that didn’t think they were probably going to be getting them.”

Elijah Higgins and Teagan Quitoriano are the two other tight ends, while the running backs room is also banged up with Jeremiyah Love and James Conner on injured reserve — LaFleur said Bam Knight is doing better after missing Sunday’s game in concussion protocol.

The trade deadline is on Tuesday, but at 3-6, the Cardinals are not positioned to be buyers to fill these holes.

The second half of the season is going to be one of opportunity for Beck, the players blocking for him, catching passes and rushing the football. The team is just wildly different than it was in Week 1.

As for Beck, LaFleur said the rookie is ready for the moment, highlighting his work with quarterbacks coach Matt Schaub leading up to this situation.

The Cardinals took Beck with a third-round pick in the draft this past spring out of Miami, and with so many injuries, there is a chance the bottom falls out, and Arizona will be well positioned to draft another quarterback in 2027.

Beck has a chance, no matter how flawed the team is around him, to show the Cardinals that he is worth considering moving forward, which becomes arguably the main storyline for the rest of this season.

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