Jeremiyah Love unlikely to return in preseason after ankle injury

Jeremiyah Love carried a hefty workload at running back during his NFL debut in the preseason opener for the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday. Now, it appears both he and the franchise may come to regret that.

Love, who was the third overall draft pick this past offseason, joined a talented running back room for the Cardinals, so it makes sense that the team would want to see him tossed into game reps to see how he will compete. And in the preseason opener against the Raiders, he saw 11 carries for 58 yards and three receptions for 14 yards.

But he ended up suffering an injury in that game, which reports now indicate is a high-ankle sprain that makes a preseason return "unlikely," according to NFL insider Adam Schefter. The franchise is also "hoping" he can return for the regular-season opener on September 13.

Cardinals rookie running back Jeremiyah Love is dealing with a high ankle sprain, per sources. It makes it unlikely that Love plays again this preseason, with the team hoping he can return for the Sept. 13 regular-season opener vs the Chargers. pic.twitter.com/H0vb0R7x4k

After missing the Hall of Fame game the week prior, Love was one of the bright spots for Arizona against Las Vegas – making multiple standout plays and contributing on three separate scoring drives. The performance suggests that he'll step up and play a major role for the Cardinals this season.

But now, he'll need to spend the preseason resting up to make sure that happens, which should open some space for returning veteran James Conner and free-agent acquisition Tyler Allegier to get extra reps over the final two preseason outings. The franchise also signed second-year free agent Tre Stewart on Saturday after the severity of the injury became apparent.

This article originally appeared on Touchdown Wire: Jeremiyah Love unlikely to return in preseason after ankle injury