The Arizona Cardinals midfielder Kyler Murray, listed as problematic for Sunday due to his lingering ankle injury, is expected to start vs. Chicago Bears, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Cardinals . Wide Receiver DeAndre Hopkins, also listed as questionable due to a hamstring problem, is likely to also face the Bears. But veterans may get less use than usual due to injuries and potential weather conditions, a source told Schefter.
In the week before the Bears game, coaches Kliff Kingsbury and Cardinals adopted their familiar cautious approach to Murray’s condition, considering his high left ankle sprain. On Friday, Kingsbury said his midfield position will be a game-time decision, partly because of strategy, and partly because of the memory of last year’s comeback in the last nine games. The end of the season is still fresh in his memory.
Mr Kingsbury said: “This week is better,” Kingsbury said, hoping that Murray would feel good and “ready to roll”. Murray hasn’t played since spraining his ankle in the final moments of last Week 8’s loss Green Bay Packers.
Arizona entered Week 13 with a 9-2 record, the best ever in the NFL, while also owning the No. 1 seed in NFC and No. 1 in the NFC West.
Last season’s final game, when Arizona led 3-6 after starting 5-2, partly because of Murray’s multiple injuries, was also a factor that made Kingsbury extremely wary of Murray.
“I just thought we wanted to end this season on the right foot and we didn’t last year,” Kingsbury said. “So we’re just trying to be smart about it.”
Kingsbury isn’t surprised how long Murray’s ankle has taken to heal because high ankle sprains are “difficult. Everyone knows that.”
Hopkins was not on the field for Friday’s open practice after being restricted to Wednesday and Thursday.
“We’re getting smart,” says Kingsbury. “We want to make sure he feels really good for the run, and so we’ll see how he improves, run him on Sunday and see if he can go. are not.”
Hopkins said getting the last two weeks off as a goodbye helped him “a lot.”
“Rest is key,” he said.
Hopkins, who missed two games in his entire career before missing the last three, doesn’t think he’ll be tired whenever he returns and he’s not worried about his tendons. His stilts react to him playing at top speed.
“I know what I can do while I’m healthy,” he said. “So go out and do your best to help this team win.”
ESPN Staff writer Josh Weinfuss contributed to this report.
