Seahawks lose Quenton Nelson to knee procedure, rule out seven players before Cardinals game

The Seahawks traded for Quenton Nelson to fix the interior of their offensive line. One game later, he is out. Head coach Mike Macdonald said Friday that the three-time All-Pro left guard will have a "minor" knee procedure and miss Sunday's home game against the Arizona Cardinals, Seattle Sports reported. Nelson is listed as week to week and will not go on injured reserve.

Macdonald said Nelson already had the knee problem when Seattle got him from the Indianapolis Colts, and new imaging showed it had gotten worse. Nelson played all 63 offensive snaps in Monday's loss to Chicago. Macdonald said the group agreed it was "best to take care of it now and play the long game," according to Seattle Sports. NBC Sports noted that Nelson went from a limited participant to not practicing during the week.

Nelson is one of seven players the team ruled out, FOX 13 Seattle reported. Six of them are starters, per TSN. Quarterback Sam Darnold cracked a rib on the second play against the Bears and hurt his quadriceps late in that game. He is out but will not go on IR. Left tackle Charles Cross (ankle) misses a second straight week, with Josh Jones filling in again, according to SB Nation. That leaves both starters on the left side of the line out. The defensive front is short as well. Defensive tackle Leonard Williams has a stinger, edge rusher Uchenna Nwosu is still out with an ankle injury, and Brandon Pili has a back injury. Receiver Rashid Shaheed (knee) misses his second straight game. Linebacker Connor O'Toole is questionable with a foot injury.

Drew Lock will start despite a right elbow injury. It kept him inactive for the last two games, and he was limited in practice Friday. Macdonald described managing Lock's reps as mostly precautionary.

What it means for Sunday

The Seahawks are 4-4 and have dropped four of their last six. The defense allowed 34 points to Chicago on Monday, the most it has given up this season. Seattle also has a 1-3 record in one-score games. Arizona is the opponent Seattle has handled most easily so far. Lock threw three of his four touchdown passes in the 31-7 win at Arizona in Week 2, and he posted an 82.5 Total QBR over the first two games, TSN reported. The Cardinals come in at 3-5.

Even with all the injuries, the board on the game page has Seattle as a clear favorite. Novig has the Seahawks favored at -365 on the moneyline, with Arizona at +355. The spread at Novig is Seattle -8.5 at +104. The best Seattle number anywhere is theScore Bet's -8 at -115. Novig lists the total at 38.5, with the under at -100. FanDuel has the best under price at 39.5 (-106). The venues differ by a half point to a full point on both the spread and the total. Sportsbook hold runs from 2.9% to 5.3% depending on the market. A total under 40 suggests the market expects a low-scoring game with a backup quarterback behind a patched-up line.

The Seahawks host Arizona on Sunday afternoon on Fox.