With one significant exception, the Kansas City Chiefs are about as healthy as an NFL club can be two days before the 2024 NFL season kicks out. Because wide receiver Marquise “Hollywood” Brown dislocated his sternoclavicular during the first offensive play of the Chiefs’ preseason, head coach Andy Reid officially declared Brown out of Kansas City’s season-opening game against the Baltimore Ravens. The good news is that Reid did not designate any other players as injured on Tuesday; the remaining players on the active roster took part in Tuesday’s practice.
Given that Reid effectively ruled Brown out earlier this week, it should come as no surprise that he won’t play on Thursday night. Due to Brown’s injury, the Chiefs will probably start all six of their wide receivers against Baltimore, including JuJu Smith-Schuster, a seasoned wide receiver who recently made a comeback. Reid stated earlier in the week that he anticipates Smith-Schuster to be prepared to contribute to the offence in Week 1. Running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire is out due to injury and is no longer on the active roster after being added to the Non-Football Illness list. Reid did not provide an injury indication for the 25-year-old back. At least four games will be missed by Edwards-Helaire’s absence. Matt Nagy, the offensive coordinator for the Chiefs, talked about the running back rotation the team will focus on on Monday.Isiah Pacheco is the clear favourite to start on Thursday over rookie Carson Steele and recently recruited veteran Samaje Perine.
Let’s see,” Nagy remarked. “That’s a genuine mentality that we all talk about—the ‘next guy up’ mentality. I believe the lads have performed admirably throughout training camp. As we get going, Pacheco has been outstanding at understanding his role and that of the other guys. It will be crucial for all of us to make sure that everyone knows, regardless of who is doing the running back, protection, or pass game, that they feel really good about their assignments.” Although Reid has openly expressed confidence regarding Perine’s potential to make a contribution on Thursday night, Nagy clarified that Perine’s onboarding is still under progress.
“We’re learning that ourselves right now, too,” Nagy said. “I think we’re learning that as we get through this. How much can he handle? What’s too much? What’s not enough? There’s a balance. But certainly one thing that I’ve taken from being with him these short amount of days is that [he’s] super smart, he’s a true pro, he gets it, so we’ve just got to balance how much.”
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