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Glendale, AZ — With the regular season just over a month away, we’ve reached the final two days of training camp at State Farm Stadium. After Wednesday’s open practice to the public, the Arizona Cardinals will return to their facility in Tempe with preparation mounting toward the Kansas City Chiefs come September 11th. Questions have arose regarding key players’ health, including quarterback Kyler Murray, ahead of Friday’s preseason opener at Cincinnati.
Here are the highlights from Tuesday’s practice:
Who won the day: Offense
Despite another heavy dose of third and fourth-string quarterbacks Trace McSorley and Jarrett Guarantano, the Cardinals offense took the win on Tuesday based solely on key players’ nearing full strength following an array of injuries. At long last, Cardinal fans can exhale after Kyler Murray was seen throwing with his dominant right arm for the first time in two practices. Head coach Kliff Kingsbury says Murray’s throwing hiatus was just “arm maintenance”.
Murray was seen on both Saturday and Monday throwing only left-handed.
Marquise “Hollywood” Brown also dawned pads for the first time during his Cardinals tenure, returning from a pre-training camp hamstring tweak coupled with an “extreme speeding” arrest last week. The dynamic duo of Kyler Murray and Hollywood Brown ramping up their practice activity is a definite win during the dog days of camp.
Play of the day:
Wide receiver Victor Bolden Jr. made a diving catch for a long touchdown as time expired at the conclusion of Tuesday’s scrimmage. Fourth-string quarterback Jarrett Guarantano threw a deep pass toward the inside of the field as Bolden took off down the sideline. The California native stretched out and hauled in the touchdown pass with his back to the end zone.
The touchdown grab both wowed the fans in attendance at State Farm Stadium while also strengthening Bolden’s chancing of securing a spot on the Cardinals 53-man roster. The Oregon State product signed with the Cardinals late in the offseason after starring in the USFL last spring.
Trending up: Andy Isabella
Hear me out on this one.
We’ve reached “fool me” more than once territory with Isabella blossoming into an impact maker for the Cardinals, but the former second round pick is suddenly making the most of his limited opportunities.
Isabella continues to make big plays while running with the non-starters on offense with his highlights including both clutch catches and downfield touchdown grabs.
With the injury to Antoine Wesley and a six-game suspension to start the season for DeAndre Hopkins, Isabella’s roster status may come off life support thanks to a strong preseason performance. As of August 9th, Isabella is likely still behind training camp darlings Greg Dortch and Bolden but is now positioned to survive final cuts.
Injury report:
- Trey McBride was again out a day after returning to practice on Monday. Kingsbury says they will continue to monitor the rookie’s sore back.
- Cornerback Marco Wilson was back at practice wearing pads after missing time with a groin injury.
- Veteran tight end Zach Ertz has not been spotted at training camp since suffering a calf injury last week. Kingsbury says he is not concerned it will be a long-term issue.
- Backup quarterback Colt McCoy was limited and did not throw. Kingsbury says they are monitoring McCoy’s throwing arm, and it’s just “arm maintenance.” With McCoy shelved and Murray not likely to play this preseason, Trace McSorley will start in Friday’s preseason opener at the Cincinnati Bengals. Jarrett Guarantano will also see playing time.
Follow @BoBrack on Twitter
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