Jonah Williams played every offensive snap of the 2024 regular season at right offensive tackle for the Cincinnati Bengals before signing a two-year, $30 million contract with the Arizona Cardinals as an NFL free agent in March.
Williams started for the Cardinals in their season-opening game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. But when he’ll play again for Arizona is not known.
The Cardinals placed the former Alabama All-American on injured reserve on Wednesday after he sustained a knee injury in the 34-28 loss to Buffalo.
“Not going to speculate the time, when he’s going to get back, what that looks like,” Arizona coach Jonathan Gannon said on Wednesday after announcing that Williams was going on IR. “Still gathering more information about that.”
Gannon did not elaborate on the nature of Williams’ injury.
By NFL rules, Williams will have to miss at least four games after going on injured reserve. The Cardinals play the Los Angeles Rams in their home-opener on Sunday before facing the Detroit Lions on Sept. 22, Washington Commanders on Sept. 29 and San Francisco 49ers on Oct. 6 in their next four games.
Williams got hurt on the final play of the first quarter on Sunday – Arizona’s 22nd offensive snap of the season.
A nine-year starter in the NFL, Kelvin Beachum played the rest of the game in Williams’ spot. Beachum and Paris Johnson will be the Cardinals’ tackles until Williams returns. The sixth player picked in the 2023 NFL Draft, Johnson played right tackle last season for Arizona, then moved to the left side when the Cardinals signed Williams in free agency.
After earning unanimous All-American recognition in his final season at Alabama, Williams joined the Cincinnati Bengals as the 11th selection in the 2019 NFL Draft.
Williams sustained a torn labrum during Cincinnati’s offseason program shortly after being drafted and missed his entire rookie season.
In 2020, Williams started 10 games at left tackle. A stinger caused Williams to miss the Bengals’ eighth and ninth games and a sprained medial collateral ligament kept him out of the final four.
In 2021, Williams played every offensive snap at left tackle in Cincinnati’s first 16 games, sat out the regular-season finale with the Bengals’ playoff spot secured, then played every offensive snap in four postseason games as Cincinnati reached the Super Bowl.
In 2022, Williams played all but six of the Bengals’ offensive snaps in the regular season. But he sustained a dislocated kneecap in Cincinnati’s 24-17 victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Jan. 15 in the first round of the NFL playoffs, and he missed the Bengals’ remaining two games.
