Chiefs Left Tackle Asked To Leave Meeting By Reid, Mahomes

The Kansas City Chiefs have been dealing with an injury situation with left tackle Josh Simmons, and Simmons was asked to leave an offensive meeting this week by coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes after putting his feet up, according to a report from Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport of ESPN. 

Simmons has had a back injury that surfaced after minicamp, and it was recently reported as a bulging, herniated disc as Simmons was placed on IR with an injury/personal designation. Chiefs vice president of sports medicine and performance Rick Burkholder said the “personal” part of the designation was to give Simmons time to meet with his family and agent about possible next steps.

Apparently, though, “personal” means just that, according to the recount of what happened at Wednesday's meeting. Simmons responded that he needed to put his feet up because his hip and back were aching, per the report, and Reid then the tackle to go see the trainers and get treatment if that was the case. 

Mahomes agreed with Reid and recommended that Simmons should leave. Simmons appeared “perturbed,” according the report, but he later apologized to Reid and team leaders by saying he “could have handled the situation better.” 

The report also provided more details about the exact designation, which was "back/not injury related-personal." Simmons has also consulted multiple doctors to get opinions, and the recommendation was rest over rehab and surgery. 

Simmons initially reported the injury as discomfort in his calf in August, which was when an MRI confirmed the disc issue in his back. Simmons returned to practice after Kansas City’s week 5 bye when a second MRI showed improvement in the disc. 

But the tackle is still experiencing discomfort, and he’ll now miss at least four games, with his earliest possible return occurring on Nov. 22 when the Chiefs play the Arizona Cardinals. 

Simmons was drafted out of Ohio State in the first round despite concerns about a knee injury in college, and he’s played in just eight of 22 games for the Chiefs, per the writers. He missed four weeks last season due to personal issues involving his family, then fractured his wrist when he came back. 

The Chiefs have been playing rookie Kahlil Benson at left tackle, despite the fact that Benson was an undrafted free agent who never played the position at college in Indiana. Benson has mostly played well so far, and he was named AFC Offensive Rookie of the Week earlier in the season.