Raiders LB is partly and unfortunately the reason why one potential Rookie of the Year candidate could miss the start of the season
The Las Vegas Raiders played in the game that saw Cardinals RB Jeremiyah Love get injured.
The Las Vegas Raiders played their first preseason game on Thursday against the Arizona Cardinals. And, while there was a ton of good to take away from that game, there was bad. Sure, there was bad from the Raiders side of things, but also from the Cardinals side of things.
The Cardinals had an injury, and it was linebacker Tommy Eichenberg’s fault. Well, it was partly his fault. There’s now a clip making the rounds from the All 22 film of the game, and Eichenberg had a very bad tackle on rookie RB Jeremiyah Love. The tackle wasn’t bad in that he missed the tackle. It was bad in that he basically hip-dropped him and rolled on Love’s ankle.
Now, Love has a high ankle sprain and could miss the first three games of the season. Not to mention, he could be the Rookie of the Year. This wasn’t intentional by Eichenberg, but it is a type of tackle that just shouldn’t be made in the preseason, or really ever if you can help it.
The Cardinals are at fault for Jeremiyah Love’s injury as well
Going back to the 2026 NFL Draft, the Cardinals picked just a few picks after the Raiders. Not long after Fernando Mendoza heard his name called, Love heard his. Love was considered the best overall player in the draft at this current moment. Mendoza may have the best potential and play the most important position.
But some thought that with the right pieces around him, Love could be a top-ten running back as a rookie. A campaign like that would have you up for Rookie of the Year, even on a bad team. Now, he may have to miss at least Week 1. And it’s not all because of Eichenberg.
The Cardinals should not have had him out there that much. He had 14 total touches in a preseason game. I get wanting your starters and key players to play a possession to knock some rust off. However, at a position like RB, which takes the most damage every game, you cannot give your rookie player 14 touches in the first preseason game.
