Jeremiyah Love’s High Ankle Sprain Puts Cardinals Backfield in Flux Ahead of Week 1

Arizona Cardinals rookie running back Jeremiyah Love is unlikely to suit up again this preseason after suffering a high ankle sprain, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Sunday. The team is hopeful the No. 3 overall pick can be ready for the regular-season opener on Sept. 13 against the Los Angeles Chargers, but the timeline remains uncertain just four weeks before kickoff.

Love turned heads in his preseason debut Thursday against the Raiders, logging 23 snaps with 11 carries for 58 yards and three catches for 14 yards before exiting with the injury on his final touch of the night. Head coach Mike LaFleur initially said Saturday that Love would miss at least a week and be reevaluated, and on Sunday he declined to confirm whether the sprain was a low or high grade — a distinction that matters, since high ankle sprains carry a notably longer recovery window than the low-ankle variety.

A crowded, banged-up backfield picture

The timing complicates what was supposed to be a signature moment for Arizona’s offseason. Love, the former Notre Dame standout, was ticketed as the clear starter after being selected third overall, but he now joins a backfield room dealing with multiple issues. Tyler Allgeier, who signed a two-year, $12.25 million deal with the Cardinals in free agency, becomes the top healthy option in the meantime. James Conner is still working back from a foot injury with no firm timeline for full-contact reps, and Trey Benson is dealing with a flare-up of a left knee issue that has lingered since last October. That leaves depth pieces like Bam Knight, Corey Kiner and Evan Hull as the only fully available bodies at the position through the rest of camp.

LaFleur has stayed measured in his public comments, noting Love “was in great spirits” even as the swelling lingered longer than the staff had hoped. “He came in yesterday a little bit more sore than he left,” LaFleur said, adding that the plan is to hold him out entirely this week and revisit his status as the opener approaches. Notably, the coach did not commit to Love being ready for Week 1, even with the Sept. 13 target still on the calendar.

What it means for Arizona’s already-skeptical market

Arizona’s season win total sits at 3.5 across most books, and the Over has carried the juice for weeks — priced as high as -152 at one shop and generally trading between -136 and -145 elsewhere, with the Under sitting in the +115 to +125 range. That number reflects a roster the market already views as unproven, and Love’s uncertain availability for the opener is exactly the kind of news that keeps bettors and oddsmakers cautious on a team trying to prove its floor is higher than last year’s.

Love’s ankle injury doesn’t move a posted line on its own, but it reinforces the backfield as one of the bigger swing factors in whether Arizona clears its win total. A healthy, workhorse rookie back changes the math on short-yardage and red-zone efficiency in ways a committee approach led by Allgeier does not, and with Conner and Benson both compromised, the Cardinals may be forced to lean on an unproven timeshare in Week 1 regardless of Love’s exact status. For bettors watching Arizona’s win total or any early-season backfield usage props, this injury is worth tracking closely over the next two weeks — particularly how LaFleur handles workload distribution if Love’s return slips beyond the opener.

The Cardinals have roughly four weeks to sort out clarity at the position before the games start counting. Until then, expect continued caution from Arizona’s coaching staff and continued attention from a betting market that was already skeptical of this roster’s ceiling.