Cardinals QB Kyler Murray likely won’t come off PUP for Week 5 vs. Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals and their fans are focused on Sunday’s Week 4 game against the Tennessee Titans. However, some news about their Week 5 opponent — the Arizona Cardinals — has come out.

The Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray won’t be coming off the physically unable to perform (PUP) list when first eligible (Week 5), according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

“It just doesn’t feel like [Murray’s return] is imminent,” a Cardinals source told Schefter.

After a player has missed four games on the PUP list, his team has a five-week period during which to allow the injured player to resume practicing. Once the player starts practicing, the team has three weeks to decide whether to activate him to the 53-man roster.

Murray has not practiced since tearing his ACL against the New Orleans Saints in December of the 2022 season.

For the Bengals' purposes, that means they will likely be facing quarterback Josh Dobbs. To Arizona’s credit, they have been in every game they’ve played this season after being a popular pick as the worst team going into 2023. They even upset the Dallas Cowboys last week, so this matchup will be no pushover.

Dobbs has two passing touchdowns and another rushing touchdown through three games this season. He also has just under 650 total yards in those games as well while completing 72% of his passes.

We will have to see how Cincinnati’s defense handles Dobbs and the surprisingly competitive Cardinals next week in Arizona.