The Kansas City Chiefs will be starting a rookie left tackle against the Denver Broncos next Monday night.
The Kansas City Chiefs got some grim news for their opener against the Denver Broncos next Monday night, as they learned that left tackle Josh Simmons is unlikley to play due to a lingering back injury, according to coach Andy Reid in a report from Jesse Newell of The Athletic.
Simmons has been held out of practices since Aug. 18, and Reid that the Chiefs were optimistic that he’d make it back, but now that apparently won’t be the case.
“Josh is rehabbing. He’s working his tail off,” Reid said. “This isn’t something that is anything other than him having an issue with his back. It’s a matter of time here. But he continues to work hard with (head athletic trainer) Rick (Burkholder) and do his part there.”
As Newell noted, this adds some drama to Week 1, especially given teh fiercness of the Broncos’ pass rush. Reid added today that the team would likely go with Jaylon Moore at right tackle and Kahlil Benson at left tackle.
This would have been considered acceptable a few weeks ago, but that’s no longer the case. Moore was facing a threat to lose his job from Benson, but Benson began struggling in the preseason, so now the Chiefs will be bringing Mahomes back into the lineup with two potentially subpar tackles.
“We’re comfortable with Kahlil on either side,” Reid said as he tried to counter that impression. “He’s been playing the left side, so we feel comfortable with that. We’ll end up playing the five best guys, and he’s one of them right now.”
Benson played in 16 games at Indiana last season with 12 starts, and all of the starts came at right tackle. He had no snaps at left tackle, and now he’ll become Mahomes’ blindside protector.
“If he has to be the left tackle, then he’s the left tackle and we roll with it,” Reid said. “That’s just how it goes.”
Benson’s struggles came against Rueben Bain in the Chiefs’ final preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as Benson struggled with a silent snap count, per Newell. Reid tried to talk up his new left tackle, which is what he was trying to do before Benson struggled.
“He normally doesn’t make the same mistake twice, which I’ve mentioned before. That’s an important quality to have,” Reid said. “And he’s tough. It’s just, he doesn’t have a whole lot of reps under his belt at this level, being a rookie. But he’s very willing, and if he has to step in there and play — which it looks like he probably will — we feel comfortable with that.”
