Scooby Wright injury is a big loss for Arizona

(Note: This article has been updated to reflect that Scooby Wright is expected to miss about a month following knee surgery.)

Arizona linebacker Scooby Wright left the team’s opener Thursday against UTSA in the first quarter with a knee injury, and the news broke Saturday that Wright has undergone surgery and the team hopes he'll be back to playing in a month. Let’s hope that’s all the time Wright will miss, as he is one of the best players in college football and PFF’s highest-graded linebacker from 2014.

Wright’s +53.0 overall grade was the highest among his peers, barely beating out TCU’s Paul Dawson (starring in the preseason for the Bengals), while Dawson was the only player in FBS to best him in defensive stops with 94 (to Wright’s 84). Wright’s work as a pass-rusher was similarly great, with a position-high pass-rush grade after compiling 48 combined sacks, hits and hurries.

Also consider the workload Arizona will be missing while Wright is out. Last season he played on 97 percent of the team’s defensive snaps.

Wright entered this season in the running with the likes of Ohio State’s Joey Bosa to be the best defensive player in college football this season, and one of the most valuable players overall. Arizona will have a tough time covering for his absence while he is out.