Michael Wilson Out for Season With Neck Fracture

Michael Wilson jumped in front of Devon Witherspoon for a 17-yard catch on the fourth play of Sunday’s game in Seattle, landed awkwardly, and got back up. He kept playing and finished with six catches for 60 yards on seven targets. It turns out he did all of that with a fractured neck. Cardinals coach Mike LaFleur said Monday that Wilson is done for the season.

Arizona is 3-6 after a 17-3 loss to the Seahawks, and now every receiver it opened the season with is gone. Marvin Harrison Jr. was traded to Houston in October, Jalen Brooks dislocated his wrist against Denver in Week 7, Kendrick Bourne reportedly fractured his tibia in Dallas a week later, and now Wilson. LaFleur was asked if he had ever seen a receiver room hit this hard. “No,” he said.

Tougher Than Anyone Knew

LaFleur said Wilson barely mentioned it during the game. “He said he kind of had a kink in his neck, but he’s such a warrior,” he said. “He didn’t think much of it.” The severity only came out after the game, once the adrenaline wore off. This is a player who has already played through two broken ribs.

He was the steady piece of a shaky offense. Wilson had 51 catches for 546 yards and two touchdowns through nine games, 10th in the league in receptions, after signing a three-year, $75 million extension before the season off his first 1,000-yard year.

Now the Quarterback Is in Doubt Too

The bad news did not stop at receiver. Gardner Minshew, who made his first start for Arizona on Sunday, is getting tests on his right arm and elbow after Dante Fowler hit him as he threw on the last play of the first half. He played the entire second half and went 21 of 30 for 166 yards, but LaFleur said there is a possibility he cannot play Sunday and the team will know more Wednesday.

If Minshew sits, rookie Carson Beck makes his first NFL start, and he has not played in a game since the Hall of Fame game in August. Whoever starts will be throwing to Simi Fehoko, Devin Duvernay and rookies Reggie Virgil and Harrison Wallace III, plus tight end Trey McBride. The Rams come to Glendale on Sunday.

Smacktok pick lean: Lean higher on Trey McBride receptions against the Rams. He caught seven of eight targets on Sunday, and with Wilson gone he is the only proven pass catcher left on the roster. If Beck starts in place of Minshew, keep the receptions lean but stay away from McBride yardage, since a rookie in his first start is likely to live on short throws.