The list of knee injuries continues to climb in NFL training camps this week. Arizona Cardinals left guard Mike Iupati will be out for at least 6-8 weeks, due to an injury on Tuesday in practice. Iupati suffered what appeared to be a left knee sprain during training camp and was quickly followed up by an MRI. on Wednesday morning. The MRI determined that he needed arthroscopic surgery to repair the damage.
ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss took to Twitter when news of Iupati came out.
Bruce Arians said G Mike Iupati will see a doctor about his knee. BA didn't know what's wrong with it.
— Josh Weinfuss (@joshweinfuss) August 19, 2015
Iupati was sought after by the Cardinals in free agency to bolster up their front line. After spending five seasons in San Francisco, Iupati was to be the anchor of the offensive line and help protect quarterback Carson Palmer in the process. He was also expected to be the team motivator for the ground game, which was lacking last season.
Adam Schefter reported on Twitter that Iupati would need surgery to repair the injured knee.
Cardinals' LG MIke Iupati is likely to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery this week that would sideline him 6-8 weeks, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 19, 2015
Iupati left the San Francisco 49ers to sign a five-year, $40 million deal, with 22.5 million guaranteed with the Cardinals. With the absence of Iupati, the Cardinals will most likely lean on six-year veteran Ted Larsen, who started all 16 games with Arizona last season.
This was an unfortunate blow to the Cardinals offensive line as they will also be without Bobby Massie for the first three games following his DUI arrest and suspension. With an ongoing competition at center, it doesn’t look very good for the starting line in Arizona. Quarterback Carson Palmer has fully recovered from his ACL injury last season and will now have to adjust to the weakness on the left side.
The good news is that the Cardinals lose Iupati to injury early in the season, allowing him to return just in time for a possible division run.
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