The Arizona Cardinals wanted a long look at Jeremiyah Love in his preseason debut. Former NFL scout John Middlekauff believes they got greedy with it.
Love played the entire first half against the Las Vegas Raiders and later emerged with a high ankle sprain. In the aftermath, Middlekauff blasted head coach Mike LaFleur for exposing the No. 3 overall pick to what he viewed as unnecessary August risk.
John Middlekauff Rips Mike LaFleur Over Jeremiyah Love Workload
“17 touches in a preseason game?” Middlekauff said in an Instagram reel. “You were just with Sean McVay, where he plays nobody; it is [expletive] insane.”
Middlekauff spent time in the NFL as a scout before moving into media and now hosts the “3 & Out” podcast. His criticism centered on LaFleur’s decision to leave Love in for the entire first half despite the rookie already looking like a major piece of Arizona’s offense.
The official numbers were slightly different from Middlekauff’s count. Arizona credited Love with 14 touches, consisting of 11 carries for 58 yards and three catches for 14 yards.
After the game, Love admitted that he was surprised by how much work he received.
“There is no justifying this,” Middlekauff said. “He’s clearly a special talent.”
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Middlekauff also pointed to LaFleur’s recent coaching background. Before taking over in Arizona, LaFleur spent three seasons as Sean McVay’s offensive coordinator with the Los Angeles Rams, an organization known for aggressively protecting established players during the preseason.
“That seat’s a little too big for you right now, and you better figure this out fast,” Middlekauff said.
Jeremiyah Love Injury Adds Weight to Criticism
The criticism became louder once the injury proved more significant than it initially appeared.
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After Arizona’s 27-14 win, LaFleur said Love’s ankle injury was not considered an issue and that he could have returned if needed. Two days later, the Cardinals announced Love would miss at least a week because the ankle was more sore than expected.
ESPN reported Sunday that Love suffered a high ankle sprain and is unlikely to play again this preseason. Arizona remains hopeful he can return for the Sept. 13 opener against the Los Angeles Chargers.
On Tuesday, LaFleur told the media that surgery was not needed.
Love entered the NFL with enormous expectations after Arizona selected him third overall. He rushed for 1,372 yards and 18 touchdowns at Notre Dame in 2025, while PFN’s CFB RB Impact metric gave him a 92.4 score, fourth among college running backs.
Middlekauff’s larger point was not that preseason football should disappear. It was that Arizona already knew what it had. He called Love one of the league’s special young talents and questioned why a player with such an obvious regular season role needed an entire half of exhibition work.
The Cardinals got their first extended look at Love. They also got the exact preseason outcome every coach spends August trying to avoid.
