Cardinals to Start David Blough at QB After Colt McCoy Setback

Arizona’s woes behind center will continue in Week 17.

The Cardinals will have to look even further down the depth chart for a starting quarterback in Week 17 after Colt McCoy began experiencing more concussion symptoms, Kliff Kingsbury said Friday. As a result, fourth-year signal-caller David Blough will start Sunday against the Falcons. 

Kingsbury’s latest update comes after McCoy had been trending in the right direction this week after missing last Sunday’s game against the Buccaneers. However, after clearing the league’s concussion protocol, the 36-year-old had additional symptoms show up after practice on Thursday. 

Trace McSorley started last week in place of the injured McCoy, who had only taken over the reins behind center after franchise quarterback Kyle Murray tore his ACL back in Week 14 against the Patriots. Since then, the Cardinals have started a different quarterback every week, including this upcoming Sunday with Blough.

Blough, an undrafted free agent out of Purdue in 2019, has bounced around with a few NFL teams during his time in the league. Apart from brief stints with the Browns and the Vikings, his longest period with one club was with the Lions from 2019 to ’21. 

During the ’19 season, Blough actually started five games as a rookie for Detroit, completing 54 percent of his passes for 984 yards, four touchdowns and six interceptions. He went 0–5 in those starts. 

Blough will hope to win his first NFL game as a starter come Sunday, when the Cardinals play the Falcons at 1 p.m. ET.