**"Hi Darren. In response to the Walter Nolen questions. This is important. You say the team didn't understate the injury severity, the fans disagree. Here's some direct quotes from JG:**
**"He's going to miss some time." (2-3, maybe 4 weeks is "some time", not half the season). "(Walter) "hasn't had any setbacks" - That further confuses the fans. At this point it would be preferable if he had a setback, because at least that would explain the amount of time missed. "He's doing well," Gannon said in mid-August. "He's progressing right where he should be."**
**Here's why it matters, and feel free to roll your eyes. We wait all year for the draft. We attend the Cardinals draft party on the Great Lawn. The majority of that excitement and expense is on the first-round pick. Why do you think our focus on Walter would dissipate once the draft was over? We are every bit as invested in Walter today as we were the day he crossed that stage. We spend a lot of money on this team. Some folks even purchased a Nolen jersey ($130). You can disagree, but we absolutely feel entitled to accurate communication from the team.**
**"Walter badly hurt his calf, he will be out half the season." What's so hard about that? Instead, fans are waiting week-to-week. Yes, every Tuesday we open up our Cardinals twitter hoping to see 'Walter activated' news, and are repeatedly disappointed. Thank you."**
It's funny (OK, maybe Joe Pesci "funny") that you bring this up the same week [Nolen's practice window was opened](https://www.azcardinals.com/news/cardinals-open-practice-window-for-first-round-pick-walter-nolen-iii). Trust me, I understand where fans are coming from, I do. I wish it were different too. But a couple of things here. This summer Jonathan [Gannon explained](https://www.azcardinals.com/news/the-offseason-and-jonathan-gannon-s-philosophy-on-talking-about-injuries) why he talks about injuries the way he does. He makes valid points. So that is part of the equation.
The other part? There are football teams, and with the JG/Monti duo, the Cardinals are one of them right now, that hate making public any injury information. That's always been the case, and it will continue to be the case. Part of it is competition, not letting the opponent (or any future opponents) know what is going on. Part of it is just keeping all information in-house, and injuries are just in that bucket.
That is the current regime's belief system. In Nolen's case, maybe they didn't think he'd be out half the season. Maybe they weren't sure. I do not know. I think in their eyes, part of it is that the player is going to have a practice window open at some point and that is indeed public and then the fans will then know a return is close. Until then, the guy is hurt.