Cardinals vs. Browns NFL injury report, odds, spread: Nick Chubb out for Cleveland; Arizona without Chandler Jones, Maxx Williams, perhaps DeAndre Hopkins

Former Pro Bowl tight end Zach Ertz played Thursday night for the Philadelphia Eagles and scored a TD … and it was his final game with the franchise as Ertz was traded Friday to the Arizona Cardinals. They were in dire need at the position with Maxx Williams landing on season-ending injured reserve this week. Alas, NFL rules will not allow Ertz to play Sunday because he did Thursday. Arizona also likely will be without Pro Bowl linebacker Chandler Jones and maybe superstar receiver DeAndre Hopkins in Cleveland, which is a 3.5-point favorite. However, that spread may drop with the surprising news that the Browns will be without Pro Bowl running back Nick Chubb, although they do have a stellar No. 2 in Kareem Hunt. 

Most Browns beat writers expected Chubb to play even though he hadn't practiced through Thursday with a calf injury, but he didn't again Friday and was ruled out. Chubb is No. 2 in the NFL with 523 yards rushing. Hunt (knee, wrist) was back at practice Friday. Receiver Jarvis Landry (knee), who was designated to return from injured reserve Friday, was practicing and should play. Starting offensive tackles Jack Conklin (knee) and Jedrick Wills Jr. (ankle) didn't practice Friday, either, but haven't been ruled out yet.

The 31-year-old Ertz is a three-time Pro Bowl selection (2017-19) in the final year of his contract and was widely expected to be dealt this offseason because the Eagles had younger Dallas Goedert at the position as well and weren't going to re-sign Ertz. Goedert missed Thursday night's Philly loss to the Bucs in COVID protocols. Ertz saw six targets and caught four passes for 29 yards and a touchdown. Overall, he has 18 catches for 189 yards and two scores on the season. In exchange for Ertz, the Eagles got cornerback Tay Gowan and a 2022 5th-round pick.

"He will always be a member of the Eagles family, not only because of what he accomplished on the field, but also because of the wonderful person, dedicated leader, and exemplary role model that he was for nine seasons in Philadelphia," team chairman and CEO Jeffrey Lurie said Friday of Ertz.

On the pregame show of Bucs-Eagles on Thursday, Fox's Jay Glazer reported that the Eagles were likely to move one of their tight ends sometime in the next week. The rest of Ertz's $8.5 million salary comes off the Eagles' books and opens $4.22 million in cap space. Philly could perhaps use that to sign Goedert to a long-term deal. The NFL Trade Deadline is Nov. 2.

Arizona is almost surely not going to have Jones on Sunday as he's in the COVID protocol and did test positive. How long he misses depends on symptoms because he's fully vaccinated. If he's asymptomatic, he can return to the Cardinals with two negative tests 24 hours apart, but that's considered a long shot. Jones has five sacks, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery in five games and is +2500 at Caesars Sportsbook to win NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

Hopkins hasn't practiced through Thursday and normally for someone of his stature that wouldn't be a huge deal because stars/veterans often get Wednesdays and Thursdays off. The concern, though, is that there's a bit of a COVID issue on the Cards right now and Hopkins has been out due to illness. It's important to note that Hopkins has not been diagnosed with COVID as of this writing.

The Cardinals also will be without former Pro Bowl center Rodney Hudson due to rib and shoulder problems. QB Kyler Murray will play but is less than 100 percent with shoulder issues.

Murray of course was the 2018 Heisman Trophy winner at Oklahoma. The year before, he was the backup to current Browns QB Baker Mayfield, who won the 2017 Heisman at OU. Cards coach Kliff Kingsbury named the true freshman walk-on Mayfield as starting QB at Texas Tech in 2013 before Mayfield eventually transferred.

Arizona is 5-0 for the first time since 1974 and the NFL's lone unbeaten but as noted is a solid road dog against the Browns. Mayfield is 9-16-1 ATS (36%) when favored in his pro career.

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