Cardinals’ Bilal Nichols out for season, 'good chance' Jonah Williams returns

Cardinals defensive tackle Bilal Nichols will be out for the rest of the 2024 season, head coach Jonathan Gannon confirmed on Thursday, per team reporter Darren Urban.

Nichols was knocked out of Arizona’s Week 6 loss to the Packers with a stinger, and further evaluation revealed a season-ending injury that landed him on injured reserve. He will join Justin Jones – who tore his triceps in Week 3 – on the sideline for the rest of the year, severely depleting the Cardinals’ defensive line rotation.

Nichols and Jones were two of general manager Monti Ossenfort‘s major free agency signings this offseason, meant to short up Arizona’s league-worst rushing defense in 2023. The injuries have made any improvements marginal at best. The Cardinals rank 30th with 918 yards allowed on the ground this season. Now, only Roy Lopez remains from the starting defensive line, with Khyiris Tonga, L.J. Collier, Naquan Jones and Dante Stills expected to fill the void.

Ossenfort can hope for a better return on his other big offseason investment: offensive tackle Jonah Williams. Gannon said there is a “good chance” that Williams returns from a Week 1 knee injury that initially put the rest of his season in jeopardy, according to Urban.

Veteran Kelvin Beachum has taken over for Williams at right tackle since Week 1 outside of a minor injury in Week 3 that required relief efforts from both Jackson Barton and Charlie Heck. The position has not been a weakness for the Cardinals’ offense, but there is little doubt that Williams would still be an upgrade if he can return this year.

Kicker Matt Prater is also on injured reserve, but Gannon said that it is possible he returns this season. In the meantime, the Cardinals have relied on Chad Ryland, who converted five of his six attempts including a game-winner against the 49ers in Week 5.