Chiefs Injury Updates Ahead of Thursday Game vs. Chargers
The Kansas City Chiefs' Sunday afternoon contest against the Arizona Cardinals ended with a win, but it also came with multiple players suffering injuries. Important pieces such as quarterback Patrick Mahomes, kicker Harrison Butker, offensive lineman Trey Smith and rookie cornerback Trent McDuffie — among others — all got hurt during the game.
Head coach Andy Reid had some preliminary information on those players following the conclusion of the contest, but Kansas City was still waiting to find out how several of them recovered over the next day or so. With Monday's injury report seeing the likes of Butker and McDuffie not practice, as well as Smith being a limited participant, there was a great level of uncertainty surrounding whether they'd be able to get ready to play in time for Thursday night's outing against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Reid took the podium on Tuesday morning with a bit more clarity surrounding those various injury situations, bringing a mixed bag of news along with him. Butker and McDuffie remain out of practice and McDuffie's status isn't looking great for later in the week, but everyone else is expected to be practicing in some capacity on Tuesday afternoon:
Harrison Butker (ankle sprain) and Trent McDuffie (hamstring) won’t practice today, per Coach Reid. Butker is day-to-day. Reid said that it’ll be “a struggle” for McDuffie to be ready on Thursday.
Everybody else is "up and rolling," per Coach.
- Matt McMullen (@KCChiefs_Matt) on Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2022 at 11:54 a.m. CST
Butker being iffy to go on Thursday is no surprise, especially considering that the Chiefs hosted a six-man kicker derby on Monday to decide which player they'd be bringing in to serve as a potential insurance policy. Former New York Jets kicker Matt Ammendola ended up signing with the practice squad and Kansas City still has safety Justin Reid who can fill in as needed so if Butker's swelling and pain don't subside enough by the time Thursday night rolls around, the team will be in decent hands.
As far as McDuffie is concerned, the Chiefs went primarily with rookie seventh-round pick Jaylen Watson to replace him once he left the game against the Cardinals. Reid also praised the job Watson, who had a pass broken up, did in relief.
When asked about Mahomes's left wrist injury, Reid said his superstar quarterback will be a "full-go" for Thursday Night Football against the Chiefs' bitter division rivals.
