Arizona Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur opened his first regular-season game week by offering little clarity on running back Jeremiyah Love’s availability for Sunday’s opener against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Love has been working his way back from a high ankle sprain suffered in the preseason against the Las Vegas Raiders, an injury that typically requires four to six weeks of recovery. Week 1 falls near the shorter end of that window, leaving the Cardinals and their new coach in a familiar NFL holding pattern.
When asked directly about Love’s Week 1 status during Monday’s press conference (as posted by the Cardinals’ official X account), LaFleur first replied, “I feel good,” then declined further comment.
Pressed on whether he was required to provide injury updates, he answered simply, “Not yet.” He did allow one modest observation: “He was out there, moving around there today. We’ll see Wednesday and I’ll have a better idea for all those guys you’ll ask about Wednesday,” LaFleur said.
LaFleur later explained his reluctance to say more.
“I’m going to be as transparent as I can; but at the same time, I think we know there is a team in California that’s listening to this too right now,” he said. “So we don’t, per the rules, don’t need to say anything for this week. And quite honestly, it’s going to be for every team.
“Forty-eight hours is a huge deal in terms of some of these guys rehabbing and recovering, and all these sort of things. So we’ll have a better idea for a lot of these guys on Wednesday, and you’ll see it on the report.”
Wednesday’s first official injury report of the 2026 season will therefore become the earliest public indicator of how much Love practiced.
LaFleur’s decision to withhold extra detail is standard competitive caution, yet the fact that Love was on the field Monday and that the coach described him as progressing in earlier updates can be read as mildly encouraging.
Love remains the most complete back on Arizona’s 53-man roster, capable of contributing in both the run and pass games. Tyler Allgeier and Bam Knight are already on the active roster; practice-squad running back Evan Hull can be elevated Saturday if needed.
How Love looks in this week’s practices will determine whether he is listed as limited and, later, as probable or questionable.
For a coaching staff making its regular-season debut, his presence would be a meaningful boost. For now, the Cardinals and their fans will have to wait until Wednesday’s report and Friday’s final designation to learn whether Love can take the field in LaFleur’s first game.
