Arizona's Defensive Line Is Down to One Healthy Starter Heading Into Preseason

I've written this note twice already this week, and the situation keeps getting worse. Walter Nolen III re-injured his left leg shortly after Arizona activated him, per reporting from earlier this week. PJ Mustipher is on injured reserve. Rookie DL Proctor tore his meniscus and is done for the year. That leaves Andrew Billings as the only defensive tackle with meaningful snaps on his résumé, and no established depth behind him.

The depth chart lists Brodric Martin and Roy Lopez behind Billings at DT, but neither has produced at the NFL level in any measurable way. On the defensive end side, Josh Sweat is unavailable, and the drop to Jonah Williams is steep. The Cardinals enter the Hall of Fame Game with a defensive front that is, in practical terms, one injury away from having nothing.

This is the kind of structural hole that doesn't get fixed by claiming players off waivers — Arizona made two such claims ahead of the HOF game, and those moves are fine for roster-building purposes, but they don't address what's missing here. The team needs bodies who can actually play. Right now, they don't have them.