NFL: Cardinals expect Jeremiyah Love back for the opener

A walk-through, and the first real signal

Twenty-five days without football. Jeremiyah Love finally moved with his team again on Monday, taking part in an Arizona walk-through six days before the Cardinals open their season at the Los Angeles Chargers.

“Progressing,” his head coach told reporters. “He was out there moving around today. We’ll see on Wednesday. I’ll have a better idea for all those guys.”

Love sprained his ankle on Aug. 13 against Las Vegas. A high one, the kind that keeps its own calendar. He neither played nor practised again for the rest of the preseason, which left the No. 3 overall pick watching the entire build-up to his rookie year from the side.

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What Arizona is waiting on

The sample is thin, but it explains the impatience. Before he went down, Love carried 11 times for 58 yards against the Raiders and caught three passes for 14 yards. Better than five yards a carry in his first look at NFL defenders, off the back of a Notre Dame career that made him the highest-drafted running back in years.

The roster leaves Arizona very little room to be patient. Three running backs sit on the 53-man list: Love, Tyler Allgeier and Bam Knight. Evan Hull waits on the practice squad. Remove Love and the Cardinals start the season asking a veteran and a backup to carry a full workload on the road.

Wednesday settles it

A walk-through is not a practice. Nobody blocks, nobody tackles, and players clear that bar long before they clear a Sunday. Arizona returns to real work on Wednesday, and the injury report that follows will say more than any quote from Monday.

Three and a half weeks separate the injury from kickoff. Some players beat a high ankle sprain in that time and some lose another month to it. What has changed is the tone around the building: two weeks ago Love was a question for October, and now his coach is talking about him in the present tense.

The Cardinals kick off in Los Angeles on Sunday.

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