The Kansas City Chiefs are back in the building preparing to face the Tennessee Titans on “Sunday Night Football” in Week 9.
Chiefs HC Andy Reid provided his pre-practice injury update on Wednesday, providing some good news as players hit the field for practice. He started, however, with the lone player expected to miss practice to start the week.
“As far as the injuries go, Jody Fortson is really the only one that isn’t going to practice today,” Reid said. “He’s got a quad contusion.”
It’s unclear whether Fortson’s injury occurred back in Week 7 or during the bye week. It doesn’t appear to be serious.
As for the good news, the Chiefs will welcome back a player from the Physically Unable to Perform list on Wednesday. According to Reid, the Chiefs have opened the 21-day practice window for OT Lucas Niang. Trent McDuffie and Kadarius Toney will also be among the players practicing.
“Then the people that are coming back here, (Trent) McDuffie will be back, (Lucas) Niang will be back,” Reid said. “Then we added Kadarius (Toney). He’s healthy. He’ll practice.”
Niang suffered a torn patellar tendon in Week 17 last year and began the season on the Reserve/PUP list. Reid emphasized that Niang has worked really hard to get back onto the field, but cautioned that they’ll have to see how he does before making the decision to activate him. Reid also updated media members on the status of TE Blake Bell, who suffered a hip flexor injury during the preseason.
“Blake (Bell) is close, he’s close,” Reid said. “We’ll see how he does here over the next week or two and see where we’re at. (Lucas) Niang worked hard and he’s back in. We’ll just see how he does right now. These guys who come back after these long stints off, you want to see how they do on the field.”
Finally, Reid was asked how close Trent McDuffie was to playing Week 7. He explained how they handle bringing players back from reserve lists in a little more detail.
“We try to keep open communication with these guys and see what they’re feeling,” Reid said. “Their coaches know them. See what the coach sees and how the player feels and obviously the medical staff and trainers. When it was all said and done, we just said, ‘You know what, he needs a little bit more time.’ He’s been great communication-wise with us. We know he wants to play.”
It’s important to keep that in mind for Niang as he begins his 21-day practice window and for Bell when he eventually makes his return.
