Cardinals' Jeremiyah Love to delay debut

Arizona Cardinals rookie running back Jeremiyah Love will not make his professional debut in Thursday night’s Hall of Fame Game against the Carolina Panthers in Canton, Ohio. Coach Mike LaFleur said Wednesday that Love would be among roughly 30 Cardinals not playing in the preseason opener, according to reports carried by Arizona media. The game opens the NFL preseason and gives Arizona a fourth exhibition because of its Hall of Fame assignment. Bleacher Report said the decision pushes Love’s debut back at least one week. ### Why is Jeremiyah Love not playing in Arizona’s first preseason game? Mike LaFleur said Wednesday that Love would not suit up against Carolina, but public reports did not describe the move as injury-related. Arizona Sports reported the coach told reporters Love would not play Thursday night, while Burn City Sports said LaFleur did not indicate the decision stemmed from an injury. That leaves the Cardinals’ opener as an evaluation night for other backs and younger roster players rather than Love’s first NFL action. (arizonasports.com) Theo Mackie of The Arizona Republic was cited by Heavy as reporting that Love would be one of “30 or so” Cardinals held out of the Hall of Fame Game. That number fits the usual handling of the extra preseason game, when teams spread snaps across quarterbacks, reserves and undrafted players rather than expose every projected contributor. (arizonasports.com) ### What exactly did the Cardinals say about his status? Arizona media reports attributed the decision directly to LaFleur during Wednesday’s practice week availability. Arizona Sports said LaFleur told reporters Love would not play against the Panthers, and Yahoo’s syndicated report said the rookie would miss the opener after the coach confirmed the status. The Cardinals’ official website separately framed the night around quarterback Carson Beck’s start, another sign that Arizona’s staff is using the game to sort through early preseason reps. (heavy.com) Thursday’s matchup is the Hall of Fame Game at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, with kickoff set for 8 p.m. Eastern on NBC, according to NFL and Cardinals schedule listings. The Panthers and Cardinals were selected for the game months ago as part of Hall of Fame weekend. ### How long is Love’s debut delayed? (arizonasports.com) Bleacher Report said Love’s professional debut will have to wait “at least one more week.” Because Arizona is playing four preseason games instead of the standard three, the delay does not eliminate a preseason appearance; it shifts the likely first look to the next exhibition. (media.nfl.com) The Cardinals’ official 2026 schedule lists their next preseason game for August 13 against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium. That date is now the next concrete opportunity for Love to appear, assuming Arizona clears him for game action. ### What does this mean for Thursday night’s backfield snaps? Carson Beck is set to start at quarterback for Arizona, the Cardinals’ website said, which points to a game plan centered on rookie and reserve evaluation. (bleacherreport.com) Without Love, the running back rotation should fall to the other available backs on the preseason depth chart, though the team had not publicly detailed a snap count plan in the reports reviewed. (azcardinals.com) The Hall of Fame Game has long functioned as an extra roster-sorting night, and the NFL scheduled Arizona and Carolina there because both teams opened camp early. For the Cardinals, that means one missed debut does not end the preseason storyline around Love; it postpones it to the next stop on the schedule. ### When can Cardinals fans next watch for Love’s debut? (azcardinals.com) August 13 is Arizona’s next preseason date, when the Cardinals visit the Raiders in Las Vegas. After that, the Cardinals host the Dallas Cowboys on August 22 and close the preseason at the Green Bay Packers on August 28, according to the team’s schedule. Love’s first NFL appearance, if it does not come Thursday, would have to come in one of those three games, with Las Vegas now the immediate next chance. (nfl.com) (azcardinals.com)