Carson Beck will start in the first NFL game he suits up for when his Arizona Cardinals play the Carolina Panthers in the Hall of Fame game on Thursday.
Beck, listed as the third-team quarterback on the roster, said he “had no clue I was going to start,” in an ESPN story published on Tuesday.
“Obviously, our schedule is absolutely crazy right now, practice, meetings with training camp and whatnot,” Beck said. “But, yeah, I’m looking forward to it. I’m really excited.”
Beck said his time playing for Kirby Smart at Georgia and Mario Cristobal at Miami prepared him for the rigors of NFL training camp.
“Two coaches that came from that (Nick) Saban tree and kind of that Saban way of doing things, which is, I mean, your fall camps are just hell,” Beck said with a smirk.
“So, it’s very similarly structured from how we did it in college. So, again, it’s the nature of the beast and it’s what you (have) got to do to eventually get ready for the season.”
Arizona fans haven’t been sure what to think based on published reports and video of Beck operating seamlessly in a two-minute offense drill.
Beck has opened to mixed reviews after being the third quarterback selected in the NFL draft with the 65th overall pick in the third round.
Beck, who led Georgia to a 24-3 record in 2023-2024 at Georgia before taking Miami to the College Football Playoff championship game last season, entered fall camp in an advanced developmental role with veteran Jacoby Brissett expected to start in Arizona.
The first Cardinals depth chart was released on Sunday and reflected Beck as the third-team quarterback, even after he heated up in a recent two-minute drill that opened eyes in a most impressive way.
Brissett started 12 games last season for the Cardinals in place of Kyler Murray, who suffered a season-ending foot injury Week 5 and was subsequently released and signed with the Minnesota Vikings.
Beck reportedly struggled earlier in fall camp, with Arizona Republic reporter Theo McKenzie noting that Beck’s “worst miss of camp happened two days earlier, when he came nowhere close to finding an open Jeremiyah Love on an intermediate pass in the end zone. On Sunday, the story was similar: When attempting passes more than 10 yards downfield, Beck often missed by wide margins.”
On Day 4 of camp, SI.com insider Donnie Druin penned that “Carson Beck continues to struggle with ball placement.”
The presumption, per the Yahoo Sports story noting Beck’s struggles, was that Beck would run third team behind Brissett and veteran backup quarterback Gardner Minshew, who signed a one-year, free-agent deal worth $8.25 million the day after Murray was released.
But Beck, whose four-year rookie deal is worth $7.4 million, could be changing some people’s minds as former NFL quarterback Kurt Benkert’s recent social media post suggested when he said, “Carson Beck might end up being the STEAL of the draft … he’s an incredible scheme fit for what their new identity on offense is aiming to be.”
Cardinals first-year head coach Mike LaFleur defended Beck’s struggles, taking much of the blame while praising the rookie quarterback for handling adversity.
“It’s cool because he just looks at it one play at a time, which is what you want all these guys to do, particularly the quarterbacks,” LaFleur said earlier this week.
“We put him in some rough situations as you guys probably saw with some keepers where he just had to dirt the ball. That’s the right play in that moment, and it’s more just a crap play call or a crap script and he’s done a good job of not making a bad play worse and that’s part of playing quarterback.”
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
