Detroit Lions v Arizona Cardinals
Detroit Lions v Arizona Cardinals
With Jacoby Brissett struggling at quarterback, the calls to get Carson Beck into the game will continue to grow louder. Arizona Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur was asked about Beck after a blowout loss to the Detroit Lions.
“We haven’t had those discussions,” LaFleur told PHNX’s Bo Brack. “We’ll end up having that discussion tomorrow at about noon.”
“Haven’t had those discussions. We’ll end up having that discussion tomorrow at about noon.”
Arizona Cardinals coach Mike LaFleur says the team has not yet discussed having Carson Beck active on Sunday.
With a 1-4 record and not many signs that the offense will improve from an execution standpoint, the question is what can be salvaged from this season. Afterward, the question shifts to whether general manager Monti Ossenfort and LaFleur keep their jobs.
Carson Beck’s 2026 Season
Seattle Seahawks v Arizona Cardinals
GettyThe calls to play Carson Beck grow louder, as the Cardinals’ losing streak has reached four games. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
Carson Beck has served as the emergency quarterback for the Cardinals this season. The third-round rookie is firmly third on the team’s depth chart at the position behind Jacoby Brissett and Gardner Minshew II.
But the Cardinals have lost four straight games. The last loss was the most discouraging, as they were blown out at home by Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions, 45-21. They’re 1-4, and it’s looking less like the people needed to turn around the team’s trajectory are in that building.
While it’s easy to put most of the blame on the quarterback for the team’s offensive struggles, the issues run deeper. Brissett has to deal with an offensive line that cannot execute pass protection assignments and receivers who can’t get open against man coverage.
The Arizona Republic‘s Theo Mackie pointed out the Cardinals’ inability to get their passing game going against man coverage over the past two weeks. Mackie did not hold back on the comparisons.
As things currently stand, Beck cannot play unless both Brissett and Minshew suffer injuries. That’s the rule with third quarterbacks who are part of the weekly inactives. That’s why LaFleur and the offensive coaching staff may change their position on the rookie quarterback.
It’s unlikely that changing the quarterback will solve most of the Cardinals’ offensive problems. Especially when it’s a unit that can’t seem to execute the fundamentals of football at key points in a game.
When Could Carson Beck Be Named the Starter
Dallas Cowboys v Arizona Cardinals
GettyCarson Beck’s likely timeline to the starting QB job could come in November. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
With this looking more like a lost season, the question is less about if Beck will start and more about when. Unless the Cardinals can put some wins together in the next couple of weeks, that possibility is becoming more likely.
The schedule isn’t going to get much easier moving forward. Their next four games will be against the Los Angeles Rams, Denver Broncos, Dallas Cowboys, and Seattle Seahawks. There is a good chance that the Cardinals could be 1-8 at the conclusion of those games.
That seems to be the likely landing point for when the Cardinals could start Beck at quarterback. If there is some scenario in which Mike LaFleur returns as head coach, which seems likely given they are already paying two other failed head coaches’ salaries as well, they’ll need to know where the rookie quarterback stands.
Beck could have a lot of the line for his career. But it also seems like the youngster may be getting set up to fail in what may amount to his only opportunity in Arizona.
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