The present study was sought to correlate progression over 8 years in knee compositional cartilage degeneration and structural joint abnormalities in knees with different types of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) abnormalities over 8 years. Researchers evaluated baseline MR images of the right knees of 1899 individuals of the Osteoarthritis Initiative with no evidence of or mild to moderate radiographic osteoarthritis for nontraumatic ACL abnormalities. The study’s findings revealed that the higher progression rates of cartilage degeneration, particularly in the medial tibia, were correlated with ACL abnormalities vs those with normal ACL, in individuals with and without knee joint abnormalities over 8 years. Over 8 years, cartilage T2 values of the medial tibia showed a significantly greater increase in individuals with mucoid degeneration, complete tear, or partial tear vs those with normal ACL, indicating a link between ACL abnormalities and an greater progression rate of cartilage degeneration in those with and without knee joint degeneration.