The Cardinals, as expected, re-signed long snapper Aaron Brewer on Thursday.
They created the roster spot by moving veteran defensive lineman Justin Jones to Injured Reserve. Jones has not practice since early in training camp with a knee problem. He will not be eligible to return to practice until after the Cardinals' Week 4 game against the Seahawks.
Because teams can only put a maximum of two players on IR-to-Return during final roster cutdown -- the Cardinals did so with offensive linemen Hayden Conner and Christian Jones on Tuesday -- the move to get Jones to be able to eventually return this season had to wait and he needed to stay on the initial 53-man roster. The Cardinals released Brewer, knowing they could re-sign him quickly and clearing the way for Jones to go on IR.
It's been a rough Arizona tenure for Jones, who was signed to a three-year free-agent contract in 2024. He had played all 17 games in the 2022 and 2023 season for the Bears, and one of the reasons the Cardinals wanted him was for his durability.
But Jones tore his tricep in the third game of the season against the Lions and was done for 2024. He returned healthy for training camp, but his knee knocked him out before the end of July.
Before his knee problems, Jones talked about the mental strain on missing most of last season.
"I play through injury all the time," Jones said. "That's been my M.O. trying to play hurt. I ain't trippin' on that. But it's more the mental aspect. It's different being at home during the season. Your daughter is like, asking 'Do you still play?' Or 'Are we going to the game this week?' And I'm like, 'no.' Little stuff like that, it hits you."
