Summing up the Kansas City Chiefs injury situation this week is fairly simple, although it did require a three-part headline.
Start with the expected: running back Isiah Pacheco remains out, despite getting some extra time to heal up during the bye week, as reported by Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. The initial reports for Pacheco after his MCL strain had him coming back around the end of this month, so that one isn’t exactly surprising.
The good news is that tackle Josh Simmons was a full participant. This is important because Simmons has been away from the club for a while now dealing with a personal matter, and the Chiefs need to assess what kind of football shape he’s in, especially given his rookie status. Coach Andy Reid indicated that Simmons would be back late last week and over the weekend, so this news isn’t surprising, either.
The one unexpected report is that defensive end George Karlaftis was limited due to a thumb injury, which was reported in a story by Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. This is a relatively new injury, so hopefully it won’t impede him on the field, but we should know more about that toward the end of the week.
Karlaftis’s presence is a bigger deal than casual fans may think. He’s been the unsung hero and the linchpin of the Chiefs’ front seven, with five sacks, seven tackles for a loss and 15 total tackles in nine games this season.
He’s been playing well enough for many to think Karlaftis is poised for a breakout performance in the second half the season, which the Chiefs could really use given that Chris Jones’ numbers are down to date.
Right tackle Jawaan Taylor was also a full participant, which also lands in the good news category given his reported ankle injury. Other players who turned up on the injury list but participated fully include safety Jaden Hicks (pectoral), guard Trey Smith (back) and defensive end Charles Omenihu (ankle).
Pacheco’s final status won’t be reported until tomorrow, most likely, as Reid typically prefers to hold this kind of information back for as long as possible.
Getting Pacheco back would be the equivalent of an early Christmas present for Chiefs fans, but he’ll probably need at least another week before he rejoins the team on the field, and the Chiefs almost certainly won’t rush him given the perilous state of their running back depth at the moment.