The Cardinals left for Miami on Friday but they did so without their star safety and emotional leader on defense, Tyrann Mathieu, who will miss his fourth game in five weeks because of a troublesome shoulder injury that now may require surgery.
Coach Bruce Arians said the team and Mathieu are contemplating surgery after the fourth-year pro suffered a subluxation during Arizona’s Week 8 loss at the Carolina Panthers. Arians said while an operation remains possible, “I don’t think that’s going to be necessary.”
Mathieu’s biggest issue is a lack of full range of motion and the loss of strength in the shoulder.