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As the Arizona Cardinals enter the offseason, they have a few less injury questions. Last year, they had the knee surgeries of Tyrann Mathieu and Alameda Ta'amu, and then there was the recovery of Jonathan Cooper from his broken leg.
This offseason, the major injuries happened earlier.
Defensive tackle Darnell Dockett tore his ACL in training camp. He will be able to participate in the offseason. Quarterback Carson Palmer tore his ACL in Week 10. He is "on schedule" and even said he will begin brisk walking and running this week. He "can't wait" for OTAs and mini-camps coming up later this year.
Quarterback Drew Stanton sprained his MCL in Week 15. He said on Sunday there was "a good chance" he could have played in the team's next playoff game had they advanced. Head coach Bruce Arians said to the media Stanton's knee would be good "in a matter of months." There are roughly three and a half months until the players even begin offseason workouts. "There'll be a bunch of cleanups" for his knee, Arians indicated.
Safety Tyrann Mathieu broke his thumb, but should be good to go. He said "this is my first official offseason," as last offseason was spent rehabbing his knee.
Guard Jonathan Cooper, who missed a lot of time this season, has nothing significant this offseason. His turf toe "is long over with." All he is dealing with is his wrist, which will long be healed come offseason workouts.
There was one significant injury coming out of Carolina. Receiver Jaron Brown fractured his scapula and will be out four to six months. That will be tough. Arians said players can't even come back and talk to coaches until April. "It's really hard on a second-year player who wants to come back and improve his game, because he can't talk to his coaches about it," the head coach said. He was clearly referring to Brown at the time.
But it appears, at least for now, Brown's injury will be the only one that might keep anyone out of OTAs and mini-camps.