Trio of Cardinals injured in Week 11 loss to Texans
Nov 19, 2023, 1:06 PM | Updated: 6:03 pm
Arizona Cardinals DL Leki Fotu runs through drills during OTAs on Monday, June 5, 2023, in Tempe. (Tyler Drake/Arizona Sports)
(Tyler Drake/Arizona Sports)
Arizona Cardinals defensive lineman Leki Fotu did not return in the team’s 21-16 loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday due to a hand injury.
Fotu exits the game after recording four tackles, two of which were for losses, a sack and a QB hit.
The lineman had strung together some solid efforts before going down, registering 1.5 sacks in the past three games combined to go along with four TFLs and a pair of QB hits.
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Fotu wasn’t the only Cardinals defender dealing with an injury, either.
Starting MIKE linebacker Kyzir White was sidelined midgame with an elbow injury and never returned. He registered three tackles and a pass defensed before exiting.
Losing White, who hadn’t missed a defensive snap in 2023 before Sunday, was a tough blow for the Cardinals defense.
Entering play Sunday, the linebacker was far and away the leader in the clubhouse in the tackles department, recording 87 through 10 games. The next closest Cardinals defender was cornerback Marco Wilson with 46.
“I thought (Josh Woods and Krys Barnes) stepped in … and played well,” Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon told sideline reporter Paul Calvisi postgame. “Hopefully (White is) OK. It’s always hard losing a green-dot-caliber player like Kyzir, but I thought the guys stepped in and played well for him. They made plays.”
Cornerback Antonio Hamilton rounded out the injury issues for the Cardinals defense after coming down with an interception late in the fourth quarter.
