Phoenix, Arizona: Cardinals Quarterback Gardner Minshew Likely Needs Season-Ending Elbow Surgery, Rookie Carson Beck Is Next

Updated 23:14 UTC: Minshew placed on injured reserve, Beck confirmed to start Sunday

What was expected is now official. The Arizona Cardinals placed Gardner Minshew on season-ending injured reserve on Tuesday, and head coach Mike LaFleur confirmed on Wednesday that rookie Carson Beck will make his first NFL start on Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams. LaFleur said Minshew needs surgery for the ulnar collateral ligament injury in his throwing elbow and will miss the rest of the season. Receiver Michael Wilson was also placed on injured reserve after tests revealed the full extent of a neck fracture he suffered against Seattle. To back up Beck, Arizona signed veteran Josh Johnson and rookie Joey Aguilar. Beck, a third-round pick, spent the first eight weeks of the season as the emergency third quarterback.

Gardner Minshew's first start for the Arizona Cardinals may also be his last this season. ESPN reported on Monday, November 9 that the quarterback likely needs season-ending surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right throwing elbow, and that he is seeking additional medical opinions before he decides.

Nothing is official yet. The Cardinals have not announced a surgery, and Minshew is taking more opinions on an injury that is far more common in baseball pitchers than in quarterbacks.

Hurt before halftime, finished the game

Minshew was hurt on the last play of the first half of Sunday's 17-3 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Seattle linebacker Dante Fowler Jr. got a hand on his arm as he began his throwing motion and stripped the ball. Minshew grabbed at his right forearm, rolled on the ground in pain, then ran off the field.

He came back for the third quarter and played every offensive snap the rest of the way. He finished 21 of 30 for 166 yards with no touchdowns and three sacks taken, throwing 18 more passes in the second half on the injured elbow. Tests on Monday showed the extent of the damage, according to the ESPN report carried by TSN, NBC Sports and USA Today.

A quarterback room with one healthy name

The timing is what makes this a roster problem and not only an injury report. Arizona traded Jacoby Brissett to the Baltimore Ravens on Friday, November 6, days after Brissett was benched during the Week 8 overtime win over the Dallas Cowboys and Minshew led the comeback. Brissett had started every game this season until Minshew started on Sunday.

That leaves rookie Carson Beck as the only healthy quarterback on the active roster, and the Cardinals have no quarterback on their practice squad either. Beck spent the first eight weeks as the third quarterback and moved up to backup when Brissett was traded. The third-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft finished his college career at Miami after two seasons as the starter at Georgia, and he led Miami to the College Football Playoff national championship game.

Beck is now in line to make his first NFL start on Sunday at home against the Los Angeles Rams, four weeks after Arizona won 18-16 on the road against the same Rams. The Cardinals will have to add at least one more quarterback this week, and their offense takes another hit on the same day the club confirmed that top receiver Michael Wilson is out for the season with a neck fracture.