The Arizona Cardinals won’t play any of their starters against the Dallas Cowboys when they get the NFL preseason kicked off at the Hall of Fame Game.
Bruce Arians made it clear he’s not risking any of his starters for this contest.
Cardinals HC Bruce Arians tells reporters starters won’t play at all in Thursday's Hall of Fame game. But field looks good.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 1, 2017
Arians elaborated on his plans at the quarterback position with Carson Palmer unavailable. Fans will be treated to a first half of football with Blaine Gabbert behind center and a second half that will feature undrafted rookie Trevor Knight.
Now, if that doesn’t get your blood pumping for the new NFL season, we’re not sure what will. Of course, that’s a completely sarcastic statement.
That said, Arians isn’t wrong to keep his starters off the field. Teams subjected to the Hall of Fame Game every year have to play five preseason games. For some players, that’s five too many. If Jason Garrett is smart, he’ll hold his starters out, too.
The risk of injury in a meaningless game that comes so close to the start of camp is just not worth it.