The Arizona Cardinals have been missing a pair of defensive linemen for almost all of training camp so far — two players they are counting on to be disruptive forces up front.
One is J.J. Watt, who landed on PUP after tweaking his hamstring in the run test. It seems like they are just going to keep him fresh until the regular season.
The other is Jordan Phillips, their biggest free agent acquisition before the 2020 season. He has been out since early in camp with an undisclosed injury.
The Cardinals don’t know when he will return yet.
It appears they are looking toward the season opener.
“We’re not sure just yet,” head coach Kliff Kingsbury on Monday. “He’s played a lot in this league. We feel confident when he’s back ready to go, he’ll be full throttle.”
Phillips landed on injured reserve twice last season with a hamstring injury but was very good when he was healthy.
If this is another injury, it probably isn’t anything to worry about. He, like Watt, participated in OTAs and minicamp.
If it is still the hamstring or an aggravation of it, then he could be dealing with something chronic.
Watt and Phllips on the interior defensive line will be fun to see. Hopefully, they both be ready by Week 1.
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