The Cardinals did not escape Sports Authority Field at Mile High without significant injuries across their once undefeated team.
But the one that stood out the most to Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians and veteran wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald was a Broncos chop block play by tackle Ryan Clady and tight end Julius Thomas that sent defensive team captain Calais Campbell to the ground and tore his MCL. Thomas was officially called for the penalty, which negated a 77-yard touchdown run by Demaryius Thomas. Arians was clearly fuming after the game and didn’t mince words.
“I’ve been coaching for 37 years,” Arians said. “. It was a flat chop block and it put him out of the game. I’ve never seen anything like it. I know John Fox. He’s a great coach and a great guy. But somebody has got to answer to that. A fine isn’t going to do it when he’s going to miss three to four weeks on a blatant chop block.”
On replays, Thomas appeared to be aiming slightly low — but not necessary at his knee — to make a tackle when Campbell sidestepped him. Thomas then misses his body and hits Campbell’s right knee instead, which buckled, while Campbell careened into a standing Ryan Clady, who leaned in and finished the hit. Campbell fell on his side, and referees called it immediately.
In a quiet Arizona Cardinals locker room afterward, Fitzgerald was also incredulous, struggling to find appropriate words to convey his anger.
“It was bullsh—. I mean, it was a bad,” Fitzgerald said, catching himself. “It was terrible man. We all saw it. We lose our defensive captain, and the guys go out to catch two more touchdowns in the game. I feel like he should have been thrown out of the game. That could have been a career ending injury. We obviously lost him from the game. We don’t know how long he’s going to be down. But that was a big turning point in the game for us.”
