TEMPE - The Arizona Cardinals are moving on to Carson Beck.
Head coach Mike LaFleur said Wednesday that the rookie third-round pick will start in Week 10 against the Los Angeles Rams, giving the Cardinals a new face under center after Gardner Minshew went down with a season-ending UCL injury on Sunday.
For LaFleur, the message to Beck is simple.
"Go out and operate. Go operate this offense and go play," LaFleur said on what he wants to see out of Beck on Sunday.
"Each play is his own. So do what he's been doing in practice.
It's just an extension of the practice field. Obviously, it's live bullets, and go operate, go play his game."
At 3-6, Arizona is officially shifting its attention toward what comes next. With the trade deadline already in the rearview mirror, Beck now gets the second half of the season as a long look for the front office, which could be in the market for a quarterback in the 2027 offseason.
Beck arrived in the NFL with a resume that made him an appealing day two selection. His college track at Georgia and Miami, along with leading both schools to a national championship appearance, gave the Cardinals reason to believe he could be ready sooner rather than later.
That said, this was not the original plan. Beck was not expected to be thrown into the lineup this early, and certainly not in a matchup against a Rams defense LaFleur described as loaded with Aaron Donald and Myles Garrett. Even so, the coach made it clear he trusts what he has seen from the rookie.
"You never really know until you get to the live bullets on Sunday," LaFleur continued on Beck.
"But just the way he goes about his business, whether it's been from OTAs through training camp before he got hurt, obviously seeing him operate there in that first half [preseason] plus the one you know possession there in the second half. So obviously we'll know more come that Sunday, but have all the confidence that he's ready to roll."
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The timing only adds to the challenge. Arizona is also dealing with season-ending injuries at wide receiver, with Michael Wilson and Kendrick Bourne both out, leaving the new starter to navigate a thin skill group against a division opponent that will not make the transition any easier. For a team trying to stabilize its offense, the next step now feels less like a reset and more like another test of how much it can absorb at once. [Read more 🡒]
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