Tyrann Mathieu injury: Honey Badger tears ACL in right knee, will miss rest of the season

Well, the worst has happened. Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians addressed the media on Monday and had news about the knee injury Tyrann Mathieu suffered on Sunday. Mathieu tore the ACL in his right knee and will miss the rest of the season. He will undergo surgery in the next couple of weeks.

Mathieu injured himself late in the game after intercepting a pass. As he went to run, something happened in his leg and he went to the ground. He grabbed his knee knowing something was wrong and was able to walk around afterward, but the mood among his teammates was somber.

There was optimism after the game, but obviously the MRI Mathieu had on Monday had other results.

Mathieu was having a special season. He finishes the season with five interceptions, 89 total tackles, a sack and a defensive touchdown. He was in the conversation for Defensive Player of the Year.

It is the second time he has torn his ACL. In 2013, during his rookie campaign and late in the season, he tore his ACL and LCL in his left knee.

This clearly is a blow to the Cardinals, but it also is very bad timing for Mathieu. He was expected to get a huge contract extension this offseason. You have to figure those plans might change for now.

Arizona moves forward now without Mathieu and still have enough talent to make a deep playoff run, but things clearly have become more difficult.