Arizona Cardinals WR John Brown, LB Alex Okafor cleared to practice

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Arizona Cardinals received some good news when they returned to practice Sunday following their preseason loss two days earlier in San Diego against the Chargers. The problem is, they can't be sure how good the news is until they see something good out of the two players the news is about.

Wide receiver John Brown has officially passed the NFL concussion protocol and was cleared to practice, but after watching about an hour or so from the sidelines with his helmet off, Brown left the field and didn't return.

It wasn't known if he developed any type of setback or if something else was bothering him, but his status almost certainly will be readdressed on Monday when coach Bruce Arians holds his next news conference.

Arians also announced that outside linebacker Alex Okafor has decided to try to play with the torn biceps tendon he suffered against the Chargers and will forgo surgery, which likely would have ended his season.

Okafor, however, wasn't at practice Sunday and there was no timetable for his impending return.

"It's just going to be a matter of dealing with the pain tolerance before we can get him back out there," Arians said Sunday.

Okafor had been enjoying a productive training camp prior to the injury, moving up a couple spots on the depth chart within the past two weeks. He is currently listed No.2 behind new addition Chandler Jones at strong-side linebacker.

This is a big season for Okafor, as he is entering the final year of his rookie contract and might have a difficult time getting a new deal as a free agent without playing a single snap in 2016.

Two years ago, he looked to be a player on the rise after recording eight sacks. But his performance dipped last season. He finished with only two sacks -- both of them in Week 1 -- and he wound up missing the end of the season and the Cardinals' two playoff games with a toe injury apparently suffered during some horseplay in a swimming pool.

Arians said he is happy with the overall depth at both outside linebacker positions. He singled out the recent play of Kareem Martin, who is listed No. 1 at weak-side linebacker behind Markus Golden.

"Kareem Martin's had a heck of a camp," Arians said. "He's doing a great job on special teams and getting a lot of pressure on the quarterback. ... Kareem's changed his body from the last two years. He went from a down lineman to where he looks like a linebacker now.

"He's long and lean and he's using his length much better. His power rush is better. So he's been able to use his speed more. If you don't have a power rush, you're not going to get home and he's developed a pretty good power rush."