Carson Beck caught the NFL's attention in the Hall of Fame game when he had an excellent debut. But as the Cardinals prepare to play their preseason finale Friday night in Green Bay, that impressive night in Canton looks like it will be the only Beck opportunity of the preseason.
The rookie quarterback hurt his ribs when he was sacked right before halftime in that game. He practiced the following week -- struggling much of the time -- and then his injury was revealed right before missing the game against the Raiders.
Beck didn't play against the Cowboys, and in the only two real practices of this final week of the Cardinals' preseason, Beck was on the sideline. In the joint practice, he was in T-shirt and shorts. The Cardinals have but a jog-thru on Thursday, and if Beck doesn't sit a third straight game against the Packers, it would be stunning.
Which is unfortunate.
Not from the point of getting Beck ready for Week 1. Jacoby Brissett is QB1, and Gardner Minshew II is a capable QB2. But if there is hope that Beck will see the field sometime this season as a potential starter, losing these weeks of work -- the one time during the season he could get heavier work -- hurts.
Coach Mike LaFleur was asked about that plan to get Beck in the regular season, and it called it a "great question."
"I'm not going to dive into it because we don't have to worry about that right now," LaFleur said. "When we get closer, I'll answer that for you."
The reality of regular season practice is this: QB1 gets all the reps in the team's offense. The backup QB gets some reps, but it's usually scout team, which means running the opposition's plays. A QB3 -- and recently, that's been a practice squad guy but it's hard to see the Cardinals doing anything but keeping three QBs on the 53-man roster -- gets basically nothing beyond individual drills.
Lots of mental reps, in other words.
Of course, a team can adjust, or move the depth chart. But unless Beck would be installed as starter, and then you're talking three practices only before a game, work is hard to come by. That's why missing this time, and these preseason game reps, bends the rookie's learning curve the wrong way.
