Chiefs Announce Moving Clyde Edwards-Helaire to IR, Other Transactions
On Tuesday, the Kansas City Chiefs announced that running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire is being placed on the injured reserve list.
During Sunday's loss to the Buffalo Bills, Edwards-Helaire suffered a knee injury and exited the contest after being carried off the field by a couple of teammates. It was announced earlier this week that the second-year back was diagnosed with a sprained MCL and would be set to miss a few weeks. As a result, the team will be without his services for at least three weeks. Here's what Joshua Brisco of Arrowhead Report said about the injury on Monday.
Without Edwards-Helaire, the Chiefs will likely lean on veteran running backs Darrel Williams and Jerrick McKinnon, with Williams being a career-long Chief and McKinnon being a new addition before the 2021 season. Williams has gotten consistent work throughout the season and played 37 snaps against the Bills, leading the running backs with 43% of the workload. McKinnon got work early in the game, even well before Edwards-Helaire's injury, and ultimately took 27 snaps for 31%. Against Buffalo, Williams ran the ball five times for 27 yards and had three receptions for 18 yards. McKinnon took just one carry for two yards and caught two passes for 13.
Additionally, the Chiefs are elevating running back Derrick Gore to the active roster and signing Elijah McGuire to the practice squad. This insulates the running back room and provides the team some depth in the event of more injuries. Gore was a preseason standout and has the potential to see some snaps should he be active on game days.
Daurice Fountain, who also played well in the preseason, is now the odd man out at wide receiver. The team's recent acquisition of Josh Gordon likely factored into that. Guard Joe Thuney fractured his hand on Sunday, so the elevation of Prince Tega Wanogho could be related to that as well. The Chiefs' shuffling comes before a Week 6 matchup against the Washington Football Team at noon.
