New England Patriots

Patriots at Cardinals Injury Report: Inactives

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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The New England Patriots take on the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday Night Football. Here are the inactives for this exciting matchup.

The first football Sunday of the year has been incredibly exciting. However, it is far from over. The Arizona Cardinals will host the New England Patriots in the first Sunday Night Football matchup of the year.

These two teams who were in their respective conference championship games last season, are serious Super Bowl contenders for 2016.

The biggest story heading into this game is the Pats’ quarterback situation. Jimmy Garoppolo is set to make his first career start, as he will replace the suspended Tom Brady. You never want to count out the Patriots, but they will have an uphill battle tonight.

Led by an attacking defense and an explosive offense, the Cardinals are an incredibly talented team who will undoubtedly give the Patriots all that they can handle.

Along with the suspension of Brady, the Patriots are dealing with some significant injuries heading into this game. Here are the inactive players for both teams in this Sunday Night Football matchup.

Patriots:

TE Rob Gronkowski

OT Nate Solder

OG Jonathan Cooper

DB Eric Rowe

LB Elandon Roberts

RB D.J. Foster

TE Clay Harbor

Cardinals:

S Marqui Christian

RB Stepfan Taylor

OL Cole Toner

DT Olsen Pierre

LB Kareem Martin

DT Ed Stinson

DT Xavier Williams

Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski stands out as the most impactful player here. Gronkowski is one of the best offensive weapons in the NFL, and would undoubtedly have been a great weapon for Garoppolo to have in his arsenal.

Unfortunately, Gronkowski is dealing with a hamstring injury. It does not appear to be a long-term concern, but the Patriots decided that holding him out for this week was the best idea. Hopefully New England can get their massive tight end back into action soon.

He is not a household name like Gronkowski, but New England starting left tackle Nate Solder will be a massive loss for the team as well. They are already without starting right tackle Sebastian Vollmer and now Solder is missing the opener with a hamstring injury.

Garoppolo is not exactly going to have a top-notch offensive line protecting him against the aggressive Cardinals’ defense. Not having Solder may prove to be as significant as not having Gronkowski.

No surprises in the Cardinals’ inactives. They enter Week 1 extremely healthy and ready to compete.