Six players were out of the Cardinals’ Wednesday practice, but only three had injuries. The other three had the day off.
The Arizona Cardinals kicked off their week of practice for Week 2, preparing for their home opener this weekend against the Minnesota Vikings. Their first injury report of the week looks concerning because six players did not practice.
However, half of those players were simply getting some rest.
Three veterans got what will likely be the first of many Wednesdays off. That trio was center Rodney Hudson and receivers DeAndre Hopkins and A.J. Green.
Three others did not practice because of injury.
Right tackle Kelvin Beachum, who left the game in Week 1 with a rib injury, sat out of practice on Wednesday. Linebacker Devon Kennard missed with a hamstring injury, while safety Charles Washington sat out with a thigh injury.
He is questionable to return to the game against the Titans.
The Arizona Cardinals might be down a starting offensive lineman as the second half of their game begins. On the second play from scrimmage of the second half, after running back Chase Edmonds’ three-yard reception, starting right tackle Kelvin Beachum went down with an injury.
He was taken to the locker room and it was reported he was questionable to return to the game with a rib injury.
Justin Murray entered the game to replace him.
The Cardinals led 24-13 in the third quarter when he left the game.
On Thursday, that total increased to nine players in league protocols. Six were added to the COVID list, including three starting offensive linemen. The other three are receivers.
Right tackle Kelvin Beachum, left guard Justin Pugh and center Rodney Hudson are the linemen, while Andy Isabella, KeeSean Johnson and Isaac Whitney are the receivers.
Pugh shared on social media that he did not test positive. He had close contact with someone who did.
For the record I have NOT tested positive for Covid-19. I was in close contact with someone that tested positive and I am quarantining per NFL rules. This is a fluid situation and I will keep everyone updated.
The league transaction report noted that there were 10 players leaguewide placed on the COVID list. Eight were because of contact.
It would appear that what likely happened was Calhoun, an offensive lineman, and Gafford, a receiver, both tested positive. The six added to the list today likely had close contact with them and are not fully vaccinated.
Players who are fully vaccinated do not have to quarantine with contact with someone with a positive test. It is possible, though, that all have begun the vaccination process. A player is not fully vaccinated until two weeks after the second shot (or two weeks after the one-dose vaccination).
The Cardinals lagged behind almost the entire league in vaccination rate until recently. It was reported Thursday that they did get past the 90% rate on the roster.
Players on the list because of contact are out at least five days and can come off after two negative tests at least 24 hours apart and having no COVID symptoms.
Cardinals RT Kelvin Beachum talked about Chris Banjo, Sean Kugler, Ramon Foster, Junior Galette and more in his AMA on Reddit recently.
Arizona Cardinals starting right tackle Kelvin Beachum participated in a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything) recently. He answered questions about a number of things. Some were not that serious. Others were worth reading.
By the way, he doesn’t have any more insight about the future of receiver Larry Fitzgerald than we do.
Below are a few of the things we learn in the AMA.
The legendary Cardinals receiver said that a player from his rookie year and from 2020 were the two most influential teammates he has had.
Legendary receiver Larry Fitzgerald entered the NFL in 2004 and has been teammates with scores of players ever since. He has surely been influenced by many of them.
However, when asked who his most influential teammates have been, he named two.
He participated in an AMA (ask me anything) for Bleacher Report leading up to his gig as an analyst for “The Match” this coming week.
His two most influential teammates came from his rookie season and this past season.
His answer:
Tough to pick one. Emmitt Smith, being around him as a rookie. Last year, Kelvin Beachum. Two people at the different end of the spectrum but both special individuals.
Smith, now in the Hall of Fame, helped Fitzgerald to be a pro. Beachum, who played with Fitzgerald only one season thus far, has made an impact on the legendary receiver in other ways. Beachum has been active and outspoken for the past year about racial justice.
Fitzgerald’s Instagram post to wish Beachum a happy birthday indicates the respect he has for the Cardinals’ starting right tackle.
He is the first current player the Cardinals have had to announce their Day 2 selections.
The NFL has a running tradition of having current and former player make the announcement of selections in the second and third rounds of the NFL draft. That tradition will continue in next week’s draft and the league announced who will be making those announcements.
For the first time, the Arizona Cardinals will have a current player make the announcement rather than a former player. In the past, players like Aeneas Williams, Karlos Dansby and Deuce Lutui have made the announcement.
This year, it will be starting right tackle Kelvin Beachum, who re-signed with the Cardinals this offseason to a two-year contract.
Beachum signed with the Cardinals last offseason before training camp and played every snap of the 2020 season. He became a leader in the locker room and has been championing social justice off the field.
As of now, the Cardinals have only a second-round pick on Day 2. They do not have a third-round pick.
The 10-year veteran’s two-year deal is worth $4 million.
The Arizona Cardinals have done nothing in free agency this week other than retain their own players. They are doing so on team-friendly contracts. The two-year deal for outside linebacker Markus Golden is a bargain. So is the announced deal for right tackle Kelvin Beachum.
He agreed to a two-year contract, the team announced on Tuesday, and some of the terms of his deal were reported on Wednesday by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
Some contract details …#WFT CB William Jackson: 3 years, $40.5 million, $26M in guarantees ($16M fully at signing), max $42M#Cardinals OT Kelvin Beachum: 2 years, $4M, $3.075M in guarantees ($2.075M fully)#Dolphins RB Malcolm Brown: 1 year, $1.75 million fully guaranteed
The deal is for two years, $4 million with $2.075 million fully guaranteed.
He played in 100% of the team’s snaps last season at right tackle and was solid. The soon-to-be 32-year-old made only the league minimum last season at $1.05 million.
The way this looks, it appears he is getting $1 million to sign and will make the veteran minimum of $1.075 million in 2021 and that salary is fully guaranteed. It would make his 2021 cap hit only $1.58 million.
The Cardinals get a solid veteran starter at a reasonable deal. They haven’t made any splashes in free agency since they signed defensive lineman J.J. Watt last month, but they are solidifying their roster.
He celebrates Black women in the month of February.
Kelvin Beachum, the Arizona Cardinals’ starting right tackle in 2020, will be entering free agency in a month. However, he is not talking about football right now.
He has been active socially, speaking about racial justice and more.
He chose to honor Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman who was shot and killed last March by police in Louisville after they forcibly entered her apartment, this past season, wearing her name on the back of his helmet all year.
He appeared on NFL Network’s “NFL Total Access Say Their Stories” and discussed why he honored her, what he continues to fight for and what he has done for Black History Month.
“For me, it’s the simple things in life,” he said, explaining why he wore her name on his helmet. “She was literally in her room in her house sleeping and the fact that she had bullets flying in her house and the fact that we still have no justice and we still have no accountability for the people who actually fired their weapons into her home.”
However, he speaks out for more than just Taylor. He is fighting for the advancement of Black women in general in this country.
“We have to acknowledge that Black women have not been treated properly in America,” he said. “Black women have been marginalized since Black women have been brought to this country. I think that, first and foremost, we have to say that is reality.”
He also wants “to bring awareness to the fact that we actually have Black women that are doing some amazing things in society.”
That said, be feels more has to be done.
“We need Black women to be a part of the fabric of America in every walk of life,” he continued. “We need more Black women represented to make sure that our Black women are treated the right way, protected in the right way and given the equity that is needed to be successful in our society right now.”
On his Twitter account, he has made it a point to honor and recognize great Black women and their accomplishments. He has highlighted one each day so far this month and will continue to do so the rest of the month.
Whether or not you agree with everything he is championing, what he is saying and doing is good and promotes a better America.
Check out the women he has profiled so far this month.
A look at the performance of the Cardinals’ tackles in 2020.
The Arizona Cardinals went through many ups and downs last season, and at their peak looked like one of the most formidable teams in the league. To get to where they were this season just two years removed from having the worst record in the NFL, they had to go through a lot of roster turnover.
In the fifth part of this series, we will be looking back at each offensive tackle who recorded a snap for Arizona this season and grade their performance.
Will the veteran tackle return to Arizona in 2021?
One of the Arizona Cardinals’ many unrestricted free agents this offseason is offensive lineman Kelvin Beachum. Will he be back in 2021?
Beachum was one of the team’s most important signings this offseason and it was a late, surprising one. He signed a one-year deal late in the offseason. His spot on the team wasn’t certain until Marcus Gilbert opted out of the 2020 season.
Beachum stepped in and became the starting right tackle, a position he had not really played his entire career. He played in every snap of the season.
It is unknown how interested the Cardinals are in bringing him back. Gilbert returns in 2021 after opting out. They drafted Josh Jones in the third round and ideally he will be ready to start.
Beachum now becomes a luxury.
The Cardinals could cut the oft-injured Gilbert and re-sign Beachum, allowing him and Jones to compete for the starting job.
At almost 32 years old, he showed he is more than a capable player in this league and could garner interest, especially now that he has experience at both tackle positions.
Will it be like last season when he signs late with a team? That is what we have to see.
