Cardinals TE Rob Housler cautiously optimistic for quick return

Saturday’s preseason game could’ve gone better for Arizona Cardinals tight end Rob Housler.

In the second quarter of Arizona’s 24-7 loss to San Diego, he dropped a potential touchdown pass from quarterback Carson Palmer in the end zone. Then, in the third quarter, Housler was forced to leave the game with what was eventually diagnosed as a high ankle sprain.

It’s a big blow for both Housler and the team as he is expected to play a key role in the Cardinals’ revamped offense.

Housler, who led Arizona’s tight ends in receiving last year with 412 yards, has sat atop the depth chart at tight end for all of training camp. As for when he’ll get back on the field, he said it was still too early to determine exactly how much time he’ll miss, as he’s waiting on the doctors for more information.

“I think I’ll have a better grasp of it after the swelling goes down,” Housler explained. He added that barring any setbacks he doesn’t expect to miss much more than a few weeks, the typical time it takes to recover from that injury.

“Coming off the field, you always think you can play through a lot of that stuff,” Housler said when asked if he knew how serious the injury was when it happened. “I wanted to be optimistic about it.”

Housler was one of two offensive starters injured during Saturday’s game, as the team also lost starting guard and rookie first-rounder Jonathan Cooper to a broken leg.

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