Arizona Cardinals OL Justin Murray designated to return from IR

The Arizona Cardinals designated offensive lineman Justin Murray to return from the injured reserve on Wednesday.

The backup guard and tackle had been sidelined with a back injury suffered in Week 3 and was placed on the IR on Oct. 3.

He appeared in 39% to 53% of offensive snaps in the first three games of the year and in his career with Arizona has played both right guard and right tackle.

The Cardinals have three weeks to return Murray to the active roster but he can begin practicing with the team immediately.

The Arizona offensive line will receive a boost with the availability of Murray and starting center Rodney Hudson, the latter of whom was designated to return earlier in the week. The Cardinals face the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday with starting quarterback Kyler Murray nursing an ankle injury that saw him sit out of practice Wednesday.

Most notably, Justin Murray’s presence could come into play at right guard, where starter Josh Jones has been inconsistent in the last few weeks. The second-year pro has been tagged with a penalty in six of the team’s eight games so far and has allowed a sack in four of the last five games, according to Pro Football Focus.

Sports Information Solutions has Jones tied for the fourth-most blown blocks in the NFL to this point (20).

Murray started one of the three games this year and has been listed as the backup right guard and right tackle. He has 12 starts at right tackle in 2019 and seven at right guard last season.

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