The Arizona Cardinals lost a key member of their defensive backfield before the first preseason game. Cornerback Starling Thomas suffered a torn ACL during Friday’s practice, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Thomas went down during Friday’s practice and had to be carted to the locker room. After further testing, the team determined that Thomas tore his ACL, ending his 2025 season before it even started.
After going undrafted out of UAB in 2023, Thomas developed into a gem for the Cardinals, who picked him up off waivers in August of 2023. Last season, Thomas played in all 17 games and started in 15 of them. He recorded 47 tackles with six passes defended.
With Thomas out for the season, the Cardinals will lean more heavily on Jaylon Jones, Max Melton and Elijah Jones in the secondary. That’s especially the case after Sean Murphy-Bunting was placed on the reserve/NFI list in May, which ended his 2025 season as well.
If there is any silver lining for the Cardinals in all this, it’s that they will know very quickly what they have in rookie cornerback Will Johnson, a second-round pick out of Michigan. Johnson totaled 68 tackles and nine interceptions as a member of the Wolverines, and he may play a much bigger role than expected in Arizona.
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Author: Austin Nivison
July 27, 2025 | 1:46 pm
