Arizona Cardinals

Arizona Cardinals defensive end J.J. Watt has tested positive for COVID-19, the team announced Sunday.

The 33-year-old will not be available for Sunday's preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens or the team's preseason game against the Tennessee Titans next week.

Watt responded to the news with a joke:

Last week, Watt tweeted asking for help on how to handle what he thought was a rattlesnake he found in his bathroom. He later provided an update via video, revealing it wasn't a rattlesnake and that the guy he called for help picked it up with his bare hands and removed it from the house as it was "completely harmless."

"If you ever want to a feel like a wimp, that's a way to do it," Watt added.

Watt is entering his second season with the Cardinals after a 10-year stint with the Houston Texans. He appeared in just seven games during the 2021 campaign before undergoing shoulder surgery and missing the remainder of the year.

The five-time Pro Bowler posted one sack, two pass breakups, 16 tackles, five tackles for a loss and 10 quarterback hits before being sidelined.

Watt is expected to be a significant part of the Arizona defense in 2022 alongside Isaiah Simmons, Zaven Collins and Markus Golden. The Cardinals will need him to be fully healthy in order to take the next step this season.

The Cardinals will open the 2022 campaign on Sept. 11 against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Before Marquise Brown was arrested on a criminal speeding charge earlier this month, the Arizona Cardinals receiver was ticketed for another speeding violation this summer.

According to TMZ Sports, Brown was cited going 71 miles per hour in a 50 mph zone on June 9 in Maricopa County, Arizona. He's due for a hearing in October and faces a fine of $350.

Less than two months later, Brown was arrested on Aug. 3 in Scottsdale, Arizona, for going 61 mph over the limit.

In Arizona, criminal speeding can be charged if the driver is going over 85 mph, resulting in up to 30 days in jail and up to a $500 fine, per Jose M. Romero of the Arizona Republic.

Brown said he was "very disappointed" in himself when addressing the incident last week.

"Just learn from it, you know, I'm not a guy to get in trouble," Brown told reporters. "So I'll just put it in my past and make sure I'm always doing the right things at all right times."

Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury said he doesn't expect more off-field incidents from the wideout.

"Obviously he knows he's got to be better than that, and he will be moving forward," Kingsbury said at a press conference.

Brown is heading into his first year with the Cardinals after coming over in a draft-day trade from the Baltimore Ravens. The 25-year-old set career highs in 2021 with 91 catches for 1,008 yards, adding six touchdowns.

Marquise "Hollywood" Brown is set to see his old teammates Sunday when the Arizona Cardinals visit the Baltimore Ravens for the second game of the preseason.

Brown opened up about his departure from Baltimore on Wednesday, telling Cardinals team reporter Darren Urban he wanted to be in a situation where he'd be valued for his abilities on the field.

"It's about happiness," Brown said. "I want to feel like I am a part of something to win. At the Ravens, I just felt like sometimes they really didn't need me. Regardless if I was there or not, they were going to win games. I love the game too much. I want to be involved."

After spending the first three seasons of his career with the Ravens, Brown was traded to the Cardinals on the first night of the 2022 NFL draft. The deal reunited him with Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray, as the two of them played together in college at Oklahoma.

Baltimore is known for its run-heavy offense that is built around star quarterback Lamar Jackson. Despite playing on a team that led the league in rushing yards last season, Brown managed to set career-highs in 2021 with 91 receptions and 1,008 receiving yards while adding six touchdowns.

Brown is expected to play a significant role right away for Arizona. Star wideout DeAndre Hopkins was suspended for the first six games of the 2022 season for violating the league's performance-enhancing drugs policy. Brown will likely assume the No. 1 receiver role for the Cardinals until Hopkins returns.

Thanks to Brown's chemistry with Murray, there's confidence among the team that he will fit seamlessly into the offense.

"There are always going to be growing pains the first year in the offense," head coach Kliff Kingsbury said. "But as we have said all along his familiarity with the offense based on his college experience definitely helps, and his comfort level with the quarterback is huge. I expect by Week 1 he'll understand what we are trying to accomplish."

Brown was arrested near the beginning of training camp for criminal speeding, and he addressed it for the first time Wednesday.

"I want to learn from it," Brown said. "I'm not a guy who gets into trouble, so I want to put in my past and make sure I'm always doing the right things at all times."

Living in Arizona comes with the benefit of warm weather virtually year-round, but there's also the occasional hazard of finding a snake in your bathroom.

Arizona Cardinals star J.J. Watt apparently had that happen to him, as he put out a call on Twitter for advice about what to do with one of the creatures:

None of the replies appeared to be very helpful, though New Orleans Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan did chime in with another idea:

Watt later posted an update, saying in a video message he called someone who informed him it wasn't a rattlesnake and just "picked it up with his bare hands."

Anyone who has ever tried to use social media for advice would probably have told Watt that he wasn't going to get anything helpful.

Watt has overcome a lot of adversity in his career. The five-time All-Pro has missed extended periods of time because of back surgery, a fractured leg and a torn pectoral, among other injuries.

Finding a solution to get rid of a baby rattlesnake from his bathroom is a different sort of challenge, but history has shown Watt is capable of coming out on the other side unscathed.

If worse comes to worst, then he can take up Jordan's idea to sell the house.

Kyler Murray shouldn't give up his day job for now, but the Arizona Cardinals star might have a future in coaching one day.

"He called a couple of really nice plays," Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury told reporters following the team's 36-23 preseason win over the Cincinnati Bengals. "It just didn't work out. Had some guys open. He does a good job with it. I've been impressed."

Kingsbury indicated earlier this month. he wanted to let Murray call plays to help send a message to the two-time Pro Bowler:

The tactic has continued throughout the preseason.

A wrist problem has limited Murray's reps in practice and kept him out for Friday's clash. He was briefly absent after testing positive for COVID-19 as well.

At least Murray is getting the opportunity to lay the foundation for a second career once his playing days are over.

The Arizona Cardinals remain optimistic the NFL will decrease its suspension for wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

Fowler reported the team believes there's still a chance Hopkins' six-game ban could be reduced to four games. The league suspended him for violating its performance-enhancing drug policy.

Per Fowler, the NFL Players Association described the topic as a "moot issue," so the odds of the suspension getting amended appear to be slim.

The Cardinals didn't take any chances, acquiring Marquise Brown and a third-round pick from the Baltimore Ravens for their 2022 first-rounder.

While Arizona had lost Christian Kirk to free agency, that was a surprisingly aggressive move for a team that already had Hopkins, A.J. Green and Rondale Moore. Hopkins' suspension provided added context, assuming the team knew it was in the offing.

Hopkins told reporters in June he was weighing all of his options and denied knowingly taking a banned substance.

"I'm a natural. I'm pretty much a naturopathic kind of person," he told reporters. "It's called Ostarine and there was 0.1 percent of it found in my system and if you know what that is, it's contamination and not something directly taken."

The three-time All-Pro echoed those comments in July and lamented what he called the NFL's "very black and white" policies toward banned substances.

Barring a late change, Hopkins won't be eligible to suit up until Arizona's Week 7 clash with the New Orleans Saints.

Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury told reporters Saturday that quarterback Kyler Murray, who had been out since Aug. 1 after testing positive for COVID-19, would only do minimal work upon his return.

Murray had to sit for five days after testing positive, per NFL rules. He returned to training camp practice Saturday. However, Kingsbury stressed that the team would not rush him back into the mix.

Murray was seen stretching before the team's annual Red and White practice:

Kingsbury told reporters that Murray might do some individual drills and participate in the warm-ups but that the Cardinals would largely hold him out.

He did mention the importance of getting him back around the team to be with his teammates. However, it appears the team will ramp up Murray's activity Monday.

"Monday, I expect him to at least do something," Kingsbury said.

Murray is in Arizona for the long haul after agreeing to a five-year, $230.5 million extension. Entering his fourth NFL season, the former Oklahoma star led Arizona to an 11-win campaign and its first playoff appearance in six years last season.

Murray completed 69.2 percent of his passes for 24 touchdowns (10 interceptions) in addition to rushing for 544 yards and four scores.

Arizona added a new weapon for Murray in the form of wide receiver Marquise Brown, who landed in Glendale after being traded from the Baltimore Ravens in April.

He'll have a big role as WR1 right away with wideout DeAndre Hopkins suspended six games for a violation of the NFL's performance-enhancing drug policy (Hopkins denies knowingly taking any substance to violate the rules).

The Cardinals also welcome back running back James Conner (1,127 scrimmage yards, 18 touchdowns) and left tackle D.J. Humphries, who were each signed to three-year deals.

The Cardinals will open up the season Sept. 11 at home when they welcome the AFC runner-up Kansas City Chiefs into town.

Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury told reporters Friday that the Cardinals need to do a better job of "handling our business" in regards to the team's off-field issues this offseason.

This has been a noisy offseason for the Cardinals. Most notably, contract talks with star quarterback Kyler Murray played out in dramatic and drawn-out fashion over a period of months.

That ordeal ended when Murray signed a five-year, $230.5 million extension last month.

The Cardinals' offseason included (but was not limited to) reports of discontent in February, one month after an ugly 34-11 Wild Card Round loss to the Los Angeles Rams.

Murray also scrubbed all Cardinals references from his social media.

Before March even hit, Murray's representation put out a long, detailed post firing a salvo in contract talks with the team, noting that "actions speak much louder than words in this volatile business."

After a few more months, Murray and the Cardinals finally got the contract agreed upon, but then word emerged of a clause that stated the quarterback had to do four hours of independent study per game week.

It was not well received, and Murray defended his work ethic to the media.

There's more to this Cardinals offseason than Murray, though.

Wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins has been suspended six games for failing a test for performance-enhancing drugs. He has denied knowingly taking any substance to violate NFL rules.

Marquise Brown, who the Cardinals acquired via trade from the Baltimore Ravens in April, was arrested and charged with criminal speeding Wednesday. Police said he was going 126 mph in a 65 mph zone.

It's been a rocky road since last season ended. Week 1 won't be an easy task for the Cardinals either as Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs come into town to open the season Sept. 11.