GLENDALE — Arizona Cardinals rookie defensive lineman Walter Nolen III was carted off in the third quarter of Sunday’s 26-19 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
He missed the rest of the game with a knee injury and finished with one QB hit.
Nolen went down with a non-contact injury after hitting the turf following a block before getting up and rushing quarterback Kirk Cousins.
As Cousins got the ball off, Nolen let up and went down. He was in serious pain as trainers and head coach Jonathan Gannon evaluated the rookie.
The cart, which had already taken Garrett Williams to the locker room with his Achilles injury, immediately came out.
Both sidelines came out in support of Nolen before he was taken into the locker room. The rookie was in tears as he left the field.
It’s a brutal development for Nolen, who had already dealt with calf and knee issues in his first year as a pro.
In the five games he was healthy before Sunday’s game, Nolen showed out behind two sacks, five tackles for loss, four QB hits, two passes defensed and a fumble recovery returned for a touchdown.
In addition to Nolen, pass rusher Josh Sweat was also ruled out in the third quarter.
The pass rusher went down with an ankle injury during Atlanta’s first drive of the afternoon. He exited with one tackle.
Safety Budda Baker was also evaluated for a concussion but was cleared. Same with safety Rabbit Taylor-Demerson.
