Fantasy Football Impact: Xavier Worthy Misses Practice, Could Miss Lions Game

Xavier Worthy is back on the injury report and could miss Week 6 after just one week back from his shoulder dislocation.

Sep 28, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy (1) runs the ball against the Baltimore Ravens during the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

If you check the injury report this week, you will see no surprises. Why? Xavier Worthy is on it. His listing is a shoulder/ankle which both date back to his dealings of this season. I imagine that the team is taking precaution, but it is still not great to hear. A banged up player can very well miss a game. It is very important to get the full story on Worthy and decide if you must bench him, once again.

Fantasy Football Impact

The good thing is that we know what the Chiefs are without Worthy. They have played multiple games this season without their 2nd year wideout. The team would look back to Tyquan Thornton as the seemingly WR1 in Kansas City. He has done a great job in that fill-in role so you should expect him to play just fine versus the Lions. To his side will be Hollywood Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster and now, Jalen Royals.

Thornton leads the Chiefs this season with 272 Yards and 3 Touchdowns on 13 Receptions. In fact, he ranks as the WR24 in Fantasy Football, becoming fringe WR2 status. Thornton remains that ahead of Week 6 and is startable if Worthy is out. He is probably startable even if Worthy does play. Be sure to check our rankings to make your best decision.

Brown has been great in the WR2 role on this team. Some would argue that he is the WR1, but is truthfully indecisive. They are both key players. Brown leads the team with 38 Targets (23%) and he does have 257 Yards with 1 Touchdown. He is the WR36 on the season. Brown is a Flex play if Worthy is out, and probably even if Worthy does. Again, refer to our rankings as linked above.

JuJu Smith-Schuster has been serviceable, but is a non-option in fantasy football. Jalen Royals should be playing this week but the rookie will take a backseat in this offense. Whether or not Worthy plays, Royals will usually be no better than the fourth option on the field. Best case, he is the third option.

Xavier Worthy Misses Thursday Practice

The #Chiefs say everyone will practice Thursday except WR Xavier Worthy (shoulder/ankle).

— Pete Sweeney (@pgsween) October 9, 2025

When any player misses Thursday practice, it is very noteworthy. This is a key day for installs. If the player cannot even be limited, he is really nursing something.

The flipside here is that the Chiefs played on Monday Night. In situations like this, practices do get moved back a day and so this can be treated more like a Wednesday practice. Regardless, the Chiefs play a game on Sunday and Worthy needs to be seen. The fact that he is not on the field at least makes it a 50/50 shot that he does play.

I am a little surprised that Xavier Worthy is not practicing today. Unclear if it’s more ankle or shoulder.

Remember they played Monday night so often times teams, so oftentimes teams don’t practice on Wednesday, but they do return on Thursday.

I have some concerns about his…

— Jesse Morse, M.D. (@DrJesseMorse) October 9, 2025

Be sure to have your fantasy team in order if Worthy is a no-go. I would suspect his shoulder to be relatively, but with some minor inflammation, managed by the staff. The ankle would be more concerning. The Chiefs need to win, but they can afford to be without Worthy. They should be proactive to get him to play, but not a do or die. Stay tuned to our injury report.