TEMPE — Arizona Cardinals rookie defensive lineman Walter Nolen III will not play this week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers due to a knee injury, coach Jonathan Gannon confirmed Wednesday.
Nolen went down with the knee issue in last Sunday’s overtime loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars and did not return.
The rookie logged just six snaps (10% of available defensive reps) before exiting the tilt.
Despite the limited showing, Nolen impacted the game in a big way behind a fumble recovery of quarterback Trevor Lawrence returned for a touchdown.
In four games played this year, he has the fumble recovery for the TD, one sack, four tackles for loss, three QB hits and a pass defensed.
Other Cardinals’ status up in the air
While the decision has already been made on Nolen, the jury is still out on some of the other injured Cardinals.
Among the most notable are wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and running back Trey Benson.
Harrison has missed the past two games after undergoing an appendectomy. With Harrison sidelined, wide receiver Michael Wilson has flourished in the WR1 role.
Benson, meanwhile, has missed the past eight games with a knee injury that forced him onto injured reserve.
He was designated to return off IR last week but was unable to get activated in time for Sunday’s game.
It’s also unclear what offensive lineman Will Hernandez’s status is after going down with a hip issue in the loss to Jacksonville.
