Cardinals Coach Reveals Key Jeremiyah Love Update Ahead of Cowboys Game

The Arizona Cardinals (2-5) are heading into a massive week 8 showdown with the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.

The Cardinals have an opportunity to defeat Dallas for the fifth consecutive regular season meeting.

One of the avenues to do just this is by running a slumping offense through running back Jeremiyah Love.

The issue? Love is coming off two straight games of sitting out due to an ankle injury.

Despite this, there seems to be hope that a return is imminent. Read more below on a key update from the afternoon of Oct. 26.

Cardinals Head Coach Reveals Major Love Update

First-year Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur revealed during Monday's press conference that the 21-year-old Love will return to practice on Wednesday ( AZ Cardinals X ).

This is undeniably a major development for an Arizona offense that needs a spark. Between quarterback Jacoby Brissett being risk-averse, facing stout defenses, and struggling in the red zone, returning Love is one of the best responses to recent turmoil.

Another piece of the equation is reserve Tyler Allgeier starting off the season in disappointing fashion. The BYU product is averaging a meager 2.9 yards per carry and is losing steam to the third-string Bam Knight.

The return to practice seems encouraging for the Notre Dame alum's prospects of returning to game action this week. Read more below on why this is the perfect runway for Love to finally hit a breakthrough in the NFL .

Love's Potential Return Comes at Perfect Time

The Cowboys' defense came into the season as one that was vastly better on paper.

Between the drafting of Caleb Downs, a new DC in Christian Parker, and more continuity for the d-line, this was seemingly a quality unit in-waiting.

Well, this hasn't come to fruition in any imagination of the theory.

For starters, the Dallas defense ranks 30th in total defense and 32nd in third-down efficiency – ceding an alarming 47.3% conversion rate on the key down.

Perhaps the most disheartening stat is the underwhelming run defense. The defensive front was pining to be a strength of the group, but it has been anything other than stout. As a matter of fact, Dallas ranks 31st in run defense, giving up 149.8 yards per game on the ground.

Part of this is less-than-ideal starts from interior lineman Kenny Clark and Quinnen Williams. Clark ( 59.8 PFF grade ) and Williams ( 63.2 ) are massive disappointments thus far, especially relative to contract value.

This opens the door for a Love return to be particularly fruitful for the Cardinals. Running the rookie out against the Los Angeles Rams or Denver Broncos wasn't a wise avenue to take. Easing the top-five pick back into action against one of the worst defenses in football is the much wiser approach.

Whether Love returns to action or not is for the rest of the week to decide. However, already confirming a return to practice is a positive sign.

Monitoring Love's status as the week progresses is key for Cardinals fans to reach an ultimate conclusion.