When the Arizona Cardinals selected quarterback Carson Beck from Miami in the third round of April’s NFL draft, the idea posed was the franchise had acquired a young signalcaller that could be stashed on the roster, develop, and bide his time.
The QB room had Jacoby Brissett on the roster, who is entering his 11th NFL season, plus the team signed veteran Gardner Minshew during free agency. Minshew has played in 63 games with 47 starts during his seven-year career. Plus, Kedon Slovis has a year under
his belt.
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After the draft was completed, the Cardinals have had numerous minicamps and OTAs. All but one was voluntary for players.
There is a lot going on with Arizona’s offensive structure this offseason and going into the 2026 season.
Right off, there is a new head coach. Mike LaFleur is an offensive-minded guy, which means a lot of attention is being spent on that side of the ball. Secondly, a new OC in Nathaniel Hackett plus new QB coach Matt Schaub. Third, all of the new guys who are now being forced to gel into a cohesive unit. And finally, and this may be the most important, a new offensive system is being introduced and installed.
If your job is to repair internal combustion automobiles all of your life, and then someone brings in a Telsa to fix, there is an issue right away.
It is one thing to learn a new playbook; it is another to digest a completely fresh offense from top to bottom. Study all you want, but on-field tutelage and classroom sessions is how this is going to work.
Beck has been to everything the team has offered. He could have attended an OTA here and there, but he didn’t. Not only has he been to all of the sessions, but the kid has been putting in 13-hour days at the Cardinals’ facility. No rookie player at any position does that.
Beck stated to ESPN Arizona:
“Just trying to pick (the coach’s) brains and just take every little inch and every little thing to add it to my repertoire and get as good and as comfortable as I can is something that I’ve done from the second I feel like I’ve stepped in the building.”
Beck’s strategy is nothing innovative. He wants to make it difficult for this coaching staff to pass over him for either the starting QB job, or at the very least, the backup.
And the notion that the franchise would have him practice, learn, and develop for a full season just isn’t a possibility in his mind at all. He said:
“From day one, for me, I didn’t want to ease into anything, to be completely honest.”
Make no mistake, Beck is putting in the work. And it’s not even training camp yet. After all of the rookies leave their meetings, Beck has been seen spending time with Schaub and oftentimes Hackett for some extra tutelage sessions. The dude is full of questions and so far, has been like a sponge for knowledge at the NFL level.
And Beck just might be in the right spot at the right time.
Brissett was named this year’s starting QB after the franchise released Kyler Murray. Then, Brissett asked for a bump in pay and has only showed up for the recent mandatory minicamp, but did not practice. In the interim, Minshew and Beck were getting the lion’s share of the practice snaps in an effort to learn this new offense.
Now, it’s the lag time of about 40 days before training camp begins. This year, the Cardinals report early because they are involved in the annual Hall of Fame Game held in Canton, Ohio. Arizona will have four preseason games this year instead of the normal three contests.
And while a lot of NFL players have booked flights to the Caribbean, or Europe for some R&R, Beck is working at the facility. Taking things slowly is not Beck’s approach.
He added regarding his current regiment, which doesn’t require much sleep:
“Really, that’s all I’ve done. I’ve been here a ton, been around the guys, been around the coaches, meeting and trying to learn everything as quick as possible.”
Beck sees an opportunity for him right away. It is not certain if Brissett will return for training camp, or if he does, what his status will become. Will he practice? Will he work out along the sidelines? Will the QB meeting room become one less?
After this past minicamp when Brissett was considered a “hold-in” player, LaFleur was asked if Brissett was still considered the club’s starting QB. LaFleur answered with:
“Not really concerned about QB1 right now. I’m concerned about these guys all reporting on July 22nd. Naturally and physically, the intensity picks up because they have pads on. You can actually play football, but (it’s) too early.”
What does that indicate? LaFleur did not come out and say that it was still Brissett’s job. He also didn’t say it wasn’t, either. All LaFleur had to do was to say, “Yeah, Jacoby is still my #1,” but he didn’t.
So, Beck sees this as an indication that the best quarterback in camp will win the job. Could the quarterback position be up for grabs now and continue to be ramped up for the job?
LaFleur answered:
“Shoot, I think it’s been ramped up. Every single day has been a day to compete. The intensity should not change from OTAs to training camp. The only thing that happens is, naturally, physically the intensity picks up because they have pads on. You can actually play football.”
And don’t get any of this the wrong way, Minshew and Slovis are also working hard. Both of them realize that with the issues with Brissett, each has the ability to work into the starting position, or become bumped up to the key backup spot. Then, all it takes is one blitz too many for a guy to become injured for a play, a series, or a string of games.
For Beck, this means spending time with Schaub as much as he can. Schaub played 16 years in the league and threw for over 25,000 yards with 136 touchdowns. That kind of experience is literally sitting in an office down the hall for Beck. His thoughts?
“It’s so hard to understand what the position of quarterback is if you haven’t actually done it, right? (Schaub’s) been in the league. He played the position. He’s done it.”
And since practice sessions during OTAs and minicamps have all been performed in shorts and lids, Beck realizes that the meat and potatoes of practicing and hitting is about to commence sooner than later. And with pads on, this means very large men trying to rip your head off. Beck has stated he wants to be prepared, and that comes with study time.
“So, obviously the playbook is big. There is a lot of things to learn, but the more time that I spend and the more reps you get, the more comfortable you get with it and the more it just kind of feels like you’re looking at the back of your hand.”
Is it crazy talk for this year’s third round quarterback to be talking about being the starter in Week 1?
