Cardinals place QB Colt McCoy on IR, making Trace McSorley the backup

The Arizona Cardinals placed backup quarterback Colt McCoy on the injured reserve Wednesday, elevating Trace McSorley from the practice squad to the active roster.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that McCoy recently strained his calf, leading to the shakeup. McCoy spent much of camp battling what was deemed as arm soreness.

Arizona elevated McSorley to act as Kyler Murray’s backup for a Week 1 battle against the Kansas City Chiefs, and that duo will be in charge for at least the first four weeks of the regular season.

McCoy is in his second season with the Cardinals and went 2-1 as a starter in place of Murray last year.

Additionally, on Wednesday, the Cardinals signed veteran cornerback Corey Ballentine and quarterback Jarrett Guarantano to the practice squad. They made room by releasing receiver Jontre Kirklin from the practice squad.

McSorley went 46-for-85 (54%) passing in three preseason games as the starter for Arizona. He threw for a touchdown and two interceptions while averaging 6.3 yards per pass attempt.

Guarantano played as McSorley’s backup this preseason and learned Arizona’s offense as the fourth quarterback for the entirety of training camp and the preseason.

Ballentine has 32 games of NFL experience with four starts. A sixth-round pick in 2019 by the New York Giants, he has 46 tackles and a quarterback hit in his career.

The 6-foot, 191-pound cornerback also has kick return experience with the Giants, New York Jets and Detroit Lions.

He has a career average of 24.4 yards on 35 returns with a long of 66 yards.

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