Chiefs Place Cooper McDonald on Injured Reserve, Shake Up Roster for Week 2

Ahead of Sunday Night Football vs. the Colts, the Chiefs are shuffling their roster a bit due to an injury.

Aug 15, 2026; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach watches warmups against the Los Angeles Rams prior to a pre season at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

In the aftermath of Monday night's victory over the Denver Broncos, the Kansas City Chiefs are down one of their depth pieces for the foreseeable future.

As eyes turn to an upcoming Sunday Night Football matchup against the Indianapolis Colts, general manager Brett Veach is making some tweaks to the end of the roster as a result. The most noteworthy inclusion is linebacker Cooper McDonald going on the injured reserve list, which the club acknowledged would happen earlier on Wednesday.

The second-year man hurt his knee on just his second snap of Monday's contest while on kickoff coverage. Now, he'll be out for at least the Chiefs' games versus the Colts, Miami Dolphins, Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers.

We have placed LB Cooper McDonald on Reserve/Injured.

We have signed Practice Squad player FB Ben VanSumeren to an active roster contract.

We have signed DE Michael Heldman and CB Melvin Smith to the Practice Squad.

We have terminated the Practice Squad contract of S Tanner… pic.twitter.com/W13ado5Onv

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) September 16, 2026

Taking McDonald's place on the active 53-man roster is fullback Ben VanSumeren, who got promoted from the practice squad via standard elevation in Week 1. The uber-athletic former Michigan State standout is a converted linebacker who could offer some special teams chops and even a bit of a new wrinkle on offense.

Kansas City also terminated the practice squad contract of safety Tanner McCalister, leaving two spots available. Those are filled by defensive end Michael Heldman and cornerback Melvin Smith for the moment.

Heldman previously spent time with the New Orleans Saints after latching on with them as an undrafted rookie free agent. The Central Michigan product had a multi-sack outing during the preseason but was waived with an injury settlement, subsequently clearing waivers and being free to sign with any team. He had 120 tackles (34 for loss) and 19 sacks across 52 collegiate games as a five-year player.

Smith's name might sound familiar, and it should. He's been around the organization for a while now, even getting activated for a game late last year but not appearing in it. The lightning-fast defensive back had six tackles for the Chiefs this preseason and eventually spent a brief period with the Tennessee Titans after being picked up from waivers earlier this month.

Now past a rib injury and having been cut by Tennessee, Smith's reunion completes a lengthy list of Chiefs transactions as the week reaches its midpoint.

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