To come out of a two-game tailspin, the Arizona Cardinals might need to win without the player coach Bruce Arians called his most important offensive player.

Running back Andre Ellington has a “severe” hip pointer, Arians said Tuesday night in a SIRIUS NFL interview, and is unlikely to participate in on-field workouts while focusing on treatment this week. Ellington was already playing with a foot injury that first became an issue in August.

The Cardinals are not deep at running back, recently signing veteran Michael Bush to pair with Stepfan Taylor and Marion Grice and Robert Hughes behind Ellington.

Ellington had five carries for 12 yards in the Week 13 loss at Atlanta that dropped the Cardinals to 9-3. Since a season-best performance at Dallas on Nov. 2, Ellington has 52 carries for 101 yards.

Grice led the team with five carries for 16 yards against the Falcons.