Report: Cardinals Rookie Josh Rosen Won't Play in Preseason Finale vs. Broncos

Arizona Cardinals rookie Josh Rosen will not play in his team's preseason finale against the Denver Broncos on Thursday night at University of Phoenix Stadium as he continues to nurse a thumb injury, according to NFL Network's Steve Wyche.

Arizona's starters are not expected to play much, if at all, according to Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic. That means Mike Glennon and Chad Kanoff will likely see the majority of the action at quarterback as Sam Bradford and Rosen sit out.

Rosen did not play in Sunday's exhibition contest against the Dallas Cowboys after suffering the injury during a practice Aug. 20. Despite the issue, he was hoping to take the field this week.

"I think all reps are good reps," Rosen said Tuesday, per Luke Lapinski of ArizonaSports.com. "I'd love to take as many as possible because, obviously, that's how you get to learn the offense best."

The Cardinals traded up to No. 10 overall in April's draft to nab the former UCLA star. While they did so with the hope he'll be a franchise quarterback, they had already signed a pair of veterans (Bradford and Glennon) who would give them time to develop the rookie before throwing him into the fire.

Meanwhile, Rosen has shown glimpses of potential during the preseason. He has completed 16 of 29 pass attempts for 148 yards, one touchdown and zero interceptions.

Rosen may have wanted to play against the Broncos, but first-year Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks made it clear that he wasn't going to put the young quarterback at risk in a meaningless game.

"Health is one and then also his ability to make sure he keeps his timing and those types of things as well," Wilks said, per Kevin Zimmerman of ArizonaSports.com. "We want to make sure that he has an opportunity to go out there and keep the mechanics and things that we expressed throughout training camp—and the things he's built upon so far, I don't want him to lose that."