Chiefs’ Harrison Butker Back At Practice
Continuing to walk a tightrope to keep a one-loss record in place, the Chiefs have seen three different kickers hit game-winning field goals during this run of one-score victories. With Harrison Butker down, both Spencer Shrader and Matthew Wright have stepped in.
The Chiefs needed to turn to Wright due to a Shrader injury — one that sent him to IR — and while style points eluded the second-stint Kansas City kicker, Wright nailed the game-winner to beat the Chargers on Sunday night. It is now possible the Chiefs are done with their revolving-door period at this position, as Andy Reid said Wednesday (via ESPN.com’s Adam Teicher) Butker would practice today.
This will start the veteran kicker’s 21-day activation clock. Butker has missed the past four games due to a knee injury, one that required arthroscopic surgery. This issue affected Butker’s non-kicking leg, and the eighth-year Chiefs kicker will aim to return soon. By being designated for return from IR, he would be eligible to come back against the Browns in Week 15. It is not certain he will be ready by then, however.
The Chiefs hold merely a plus-56 point differential — 11th-best in the NFL — which has placed a greater importance on precision from their kickers. Ten of the defending champions’ 12 wins have come by one score. Shrader hit a short game-winner to lift the Chiefs past the Panthers, while a banked-in Wright offering saved them against the Chargers. Butker has offered more stability. He is 18-for-20 on field goals this season, including a walk-off 51-yarder to beat the Bengals in Week 2, and 21-for-22 on PATs.
Kansas City is in good shape still, in terms of injury activations; the team holds six going into Week 15. They are aiming for Marquise Brown to return along with Butker. The free agent signing has been eligible to return from IR for months, but Reid said Wednesday he has not received clearance yet.
Chiefs Considered Donovan Smith Reunion; Marquise Brown December Return In Play?
DECEMBER 1: NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports Brown has an appointment with his surgeon scheduled for Week 15. It is at that point he could receive full clearance, paving the way for a return to practice. Brown could be an option to play late in the regular season, but at a minimum he appears to be on track to be available during the playoffs.
NOVEMBER 27: Bolstered by a strong interior O-line trio for the past four seasons, the Chiefs have seen their tackle situation deteriorate. The perennial contenders have not exactly presented stability at either tackle spot since left tackle Orlando Brown Jr.‘s free agency defection, with 2023 free agency addition Jawaan Taylor not panning out at right tackle, either.
Tied to a $20MM-per-year deal that features a guaranteed 2025 salary, Taylor continues to start at RT. The Chiefs may be on the verge of using a third LT starter soon. They signed longtime Cardinals blindside blocker D.J. Humphries last week, shortly after the 10th-year veteran was cleared from ACL rehab, passing on a reunion with Donovan Smith in doing so.
[RELATED: Isiah Pacheco, Charles Omenihu Expected To Play In Week 13]
The Chiefs turned to Smith shortly after the 2023 draft, adding him as a plug-and-play left tackle. Kansas City considered bringing Smith back to help its tackle situation, according to The Athletic’s Nate Taylor, but ended up preferring Humphries (subscription required). Describing the two-time defending champs’ LT move as a “close call” between Humphries and Smith, Taylor adds the Chiefs are hoping the former will be ready to start either in Week 14 (against the Chargers) or Week 15 (vs. the Browns). Smith remains a free agent.
No talk of Humphries being a high-profile insurance policy for the ineffective Wanya Morris–Kingsley Suamataia tandem appears taking place, as it certainly looks like Humphries was signed to start. Patrick Mahomes has been sacked 15 times over the past four games, including five times by a Panthers team that did not exactly invested much in its pass rush post-Brian Burns. While OC Matt Nagy said (via ESPN.com’s Adam Teicher) Humphries will not be thrown into the fire immediately, the expectation will be the soon-to-be 31-year-old tackle will become the Chiefs’ blindside starter before the regular seasons ends.
Injuries have been a problem for Humphries throughout his career. Prior to the ACL tear sustained in Week 17 of last season, the eight-year Cardinals starter missed nine games in 2022 (with a back injury). He missed 11 games in 2017 and seven in 2018 as well. A productive midcareer stretch — one that booked him two Arizona extensions — followed, but Kansas City is effectively rolling the dice here. Smith, 30, missed five starts last season and four in 2022; the former Buccaneers LT bastion also only missed two combined games over his first seven seasons.
Holding a Suamataia-Morris position battle throughout the offseason, the Chiefs had not planned to bring back Smith, who played out a one-year, $9MM deal in 2023. It will certainly be interesting to see how much Humphries can help, as inexperience will no longer be an issue at that position once the rehabbed LT is ready to play.
On the subject of players returning from injury, the Chiefs continue to express optimism on Marquise Brown. Rumored to be sidelined throughout at least the regular season, the free agency addition has generated hope he will play before the season ends. Now, Taylor adds the Chiefs are aiming for Brown to begin practicing by mid-December. This would not look to mean Brown will be playing in games by then, as it sounds like the Chiefs will attempt to take advantage of the three-week IR-return window.
If Brown returns by mid-December, the Chiefs could aim to slow-play his comeback from shoulder surgery until the divisional round. Given the Bills’ momentum and two-score win over the Chiefs in Week 11, the latter’s threepeat bid involving a bye is far from a lock. But the Chiefs remain the AFC leaders, at 10-1, and could give Brown a month to ramp up before a Round 2 return. Granted, Kansas City would surely be interested in the former first-round pick coming back sooner to establish some semblance of a rapport with Mahomes, but considering the reports of how long Brown would need to be out, the organization holding out hope for a playoff re-emergence would line up with the timeline.
The Chiefs have featured uneven receiving situations in each of the past two seasons. While DeAndre Hopkins has provided some support, the potential Hall of Famer has been inconsistent early in his Chiefs run. The team had aimed to have a Brown-Rashee Rice–Xavier Worthy trio, but Brown and Rice’s injuries nixed that. Rice is out for the season, while Worthy has proven unreliable thus far. Brown coming back would add a proven veteran to the mix, which would stand to help a team that has seen Travis Kelce show glaring signs of a decline this season.
Chiefs’ Marquise Brown Could Return This Season
The Chiefs “haven’t totally ruled out” a late-season return by wide receiver Marquise Brown, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Brown was originally expected to miss the rest of the 2024 season after undergoing shoulder surgery and landing on injured reserve in September. However, the Chiefs’ coaching staff have been monitoring Brown’s rehab process, according to Fowler, and the next month will determine if the 2019 first-rounder can play this season.
Brown’s return would be a major boost to a Kansas City offense that ranks outside of the top 10 in several categories, including points per game, yards per game, and yards per play. The Chiefs just lost their first game of the season to the Bills, with Patrick Mahomes unable to surpass 200 passing yards and just one of his pass catchers recording more than 30 receiving yards.
The Chiefs have just two players averaging at least 50 receiving yards per game: Travis Kelce and DeAndre Hopkins. Kelce has not been as dominant as past years, but Hopkins has settled into Kansas City nicely with 17 receptions for 200 yards in his first four games. Xavier Worthy has impressed as a gadget playmaker but lacks the consistency to be a WR2 on a team with Super Bowl aspirations. Brown is a speedster, too, but he has a more developed skillset that can complement the route-running and veteran savvy of Kelce and Hopkins while allowing Worthy to remain in his role as a home run threat.
Brown signed a one-year, $7MM contract with the Chiefs during the offseason after catching just 51 of his 101 targets for a career-low 574 yards in 2023 with the Cardinals. He was expected to be the latest speedy receiver to find success in Kansas City with Mahomes and Andy Reid, but played just one snap in the preseason before injuring his shoulder.
Brown has dealt with a myriad of injuries dating back to a Lisfranc injury in his last year of college, which combined with his undersized frame to cause pre-draft concerns about his durability in the NFL. However, he played in at least 12 games in each of his first five seasons with an average of 14.4 appearances per year.
Chiefs Considering WR Acquisition?
With Rashee Rice potentially out for the season and Marquise Brown sidelined until at least the playoffs, the Chiefs may have to look for outside help at wide receiver. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport expects the Chiefs to “go out and look at options” at the position, with a trade being “at least” in consideration.
[RELATED: Chiefs Fear ACL Tear For WR Rashee Rice]
Rapoport notes that the Chiefs front office is generally “open minded” and considers every opportunity as they look to plug holes, so a trade would surely be a logical route for the WR-needy squad. Rapoport points to the team’s sudden acquisition of Kadarius Toney in 2022, which came as the organization was navigating a post-Tyreek Hill era.
One potential name that Rapoport points to is Titans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins. The Titans are currently 0-3, and if they continue going the wrong way in the standings, there’s a good chance the veteran wideout will be available at the trade deadline. Rapoport also notes that popular trade candidate Amari Cooper could fit the Chiefs payroll thanks to his low base salary, but the reporter rejects the idea of Jaguars wideout Christian Kirk fitting into the cap sheet.
Rookie first-round WR Xavier Worthy got into a career-high 45 snaps yesterday and will likely join Travis Kelce as one of Patrick Mahomes‘ preferred targets moving forward. The team has also leaned on the likes of Justin Watson and JuJu Smith-Schuster for about half of their offensive snaps through the first month of the season, and Skyy Moore and Mecole Hardman got extended cameos yesterday after Rice was knocked out of the game. Rapoport notes that Brown could return to the Chiefs in time for the postseason, but it’s unlikely the offense will be hanging their hopes on the injured receiver.
As for Rice, Josina Anderson reports that the receiver is seeking “at least” a second opinion on his injured knee in an attempt to “gather additional information.” The Chiefs have also discussed “potential windows for surgery.” ESPN’s Adam Schefter adds that there “remains uncertainty” surrounding the extend of Rice’s injury, and more tests will be required before the team can set a definitive timetable.
Chiefs’ Marquise Brown To Miss 2024 Season
Shortly after Chiefs wide receiver Marquise Brown was placed on injured reserve ahead of undergoing shoulder surgery, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that Brown is expected to miss the entire 2024 regular season. We had already been told by head coach Andy Reid that Brown’s recovery period had been adjusted to “months” and not “weeks,” but the sternoclavicular injury will seemingly keep Brown from returning this year.
Brown signed a one-year, $7MM deal with the Chiefs this offseason after finishing out his rookie contact with the Cardinals. Originally a Ravens Day 1 selection, Brown was impressive over his time in Baltimore, scoring 21 touchdowns over those three seasons and breaking the 1,000-yard receiving mark in his final year with the team. The Ravens surprisingly included him in a draft day trade that allowed them to move back into the first round and select Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum.
During his two years in Arizona, Brown failed to find the same consistent success in the endzone. Though he twice finished second on the team in receiving yards, Brown only secured seven touchdowns during his time as a Cardinal. That hurt his free agent market during the offseason, although with a career yards per reception average of 11.6, the 27-year-old represented one of the top speedsters available and positioned himself to handle a notable role in Kansas City. Now, any game action he sees this campaign will come during the playoffs.
Consistency at the receiver position was an issue for the Chiefs in 2023, with the team’s passing efficiency not reaching its previous heights en route to a second straight Super Bowl title. Brown’s signing was followed by the decision to draft Xavier Worthy in the first round. The latter enjoyed an impressive debut (68 scrimmage yards, two total touchdowns) while logging a 63% snap share and he will be counted on to operate as a key vertical threat in Brown’s absence.
Since 2023 second-rounder Rashee Rice is set to continue playing without the threat of any suspension for the time being, he will remain a focal point for Kansas City’s offense. The team also has familiar faces in Mecole Hardman and JuJu Smith-Schuster in place after Hardman was re-acquired midway through last season and Smith-Schuster returned to the team following his Patriots release. The Chiefs’ depth chart is rounded out by Skyy Moore and Justin Watson as things stand.
With roughly $6MM in cap space, Kansas City does not have nearly as much spending power as many other teams at the moment. That would make an outside addition challenging, but the team has a number of other pass catchers (including, of course, All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce) to rely on. For Brown, meanwhile, his attention will turn to recovery once his operation takes place ahead of what will no doubt be a relatively tepid free agent Market next spring.
Adam La Rose contributed to this post.
Chiefs Place Marquise Brown On IR; WR To Undergo Shoulder Surgery
10:05pm: Brown has officially be moved to IR. When addressing his situation, head coach Andy Reid said Brown’s recovery timeline is now “months not weeks” (h/t ESPN’s Adam Schefter). That ensures he will miss more than the four-week minimum as Kansas City moves forward without Brown in the fold for the foreseeable future.
11:03am: Marquise Brown‘s SC joint injury will further delay his Chiefs debut. The veteran wideout is being placed on injured reserve, veteran insider Jordan Schultz reports.
The move comes after testing revealed Brown’s injury has not healed correctly, Schultz adds. To ensure a proper recovery, the free agent pickup will undergo a procedure on Monday. Moving to injured reserve will guarantee at least a four-week absence after Brown already missed Kansas City’s season opener.
The 27-year-old suffered the injury in mid-August, and his initial recovery timeline left his Week 1 availability in doubt. He appeared to be making progress, and ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler recently reported Brown did not suffer a broken bone. That differentiates his situation from that of Tyreek Hill in 2019 when he suffered a similar injury, but in spite of that Brown will be sidelined for a notable stretch.
The Oklahoma product managed a 1,000-yard season during his third and final Ravens campaign, but his stint in Baltimore generally fell short of expectations. After asking to be dealt, Brown spent the 2022 and ’23 campaigns in Arizona. He saw his yards per reception average dip to 10.9 across that span, but he was still viewed as one of the top vertical options in the receiver free agent market. Kansas City inked him to a one-year deal with a base value of $7MM. Another $4MM is in place via incentives, but Brown’s ability to reach those will be impacted by his extended absence.
Adding at the receiver spot was an offseason priority for the Chiefs, and they followed up the Brown signing by moving up on Day 1 of the draft and selecting Xavier Worthy. The 40-yard dash record-holder had a strong NFL debut by scoring a pair of touchdowns, and he will be counted to remain an impact player in the passing attack. Kansas City also has Rashee Rice, Justin Watson, Skyy Moore, Mecole Hardman and JuJu Smith-Schuster in place on the depth chart.
Brown will be sidelined for the four games remaining until the Chiefs’ bye week. He will be eligible to return after that point, though bringing him back into the fold will use one of the team’s eight allotted IR activations.
Injury Notes: Bears, Walker, Murray, Bosa
The Bears got good news surrounding the knee injury that knocked Rome Odunze out of Sunday’s season opener. Per Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz, the rookie wide receiver suffered a Grade 1 knee sprain, the “best-case scenario” for the team and player.
Odunze suffered his MCL injury while blocking for Velus Jones Jr. during a fourth-quarter screen pass. The rookie stayed in the game for one additional play before exiting for good. The wideout is officially considered week-to-week, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, and there’s been no indication that the ninth-overall pick will have a stay on injured reserve. Coach Matt Eberflus said the Bears were “lucky” to avoid a serious injury, and he even kept the door open to Odunze playing in Week 2.
Wednesday’s injury report also showed that fellow receiver Keenan Allen didn’t practice while nursing a heel injury. Eberflus later clarified that the wideout was considered day-to-day, and there’s hope the offseason acquisition can hit the practice field on Thursday and Friday following his day off.
In the unlikely event that both Odunze and Allen are sidelined, the Bears’ deep wide receiver grouping will be down to just D.J. Moore. Rookie QB Caleb Williams is certainly hoping for his full arsenal of wideouts following an NFL debut where he completed only 14 of 29 pass attempts for 93 yards.
More injury notes from around the NFL…
- Kenneth Walker left Sunday’s game with an oblique injury and didn’t practice on Wednesday, per the Seahawks‘ injury report. Mike Macdonald said the running back is day-to-day (via ESPN’s Brady Henderson), but another missed practice would obviously put the player’s Week 2 availability in doubt. Walker exited the season opener after compiling 103 rushing yards and one touchdown. Zach Charbonnet finished the game at running back, scoring a 30-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.
- Kyler Murray was a full participant at today’s practice, but the Cardinals QB still showed up on the injury report with a knee injury. Murray, of course, suffered an ACL injury during the 2022 campaign, and 2024 represented his first healthy offseason in a few years. Murray didn’t miss a snap on Sunday, and it seemed like his knee was in good shape after he ran for 57 yards. Clayton Tune is the only other QB currently on the active roster.
- The Chargers announced that Joey Bosa was a limited participant at Wednesday’s practice while dealing with a back injury. The pass rusher appeared in 60 percent of his team’s defensive snaps in Week 1, collecting a sack and a forced fumble along the way. The long-time Charger has been snake bitten by injuries over the past few years, missing 20 total games.
- NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport passes along a list of other notable players who didn’t practice on Wednesday, including Bengals receiver Tee Higgins (hamstring), Chiefs receiver Marquise Brown (shoulder), Browns tight end David Njoku (ankle), Packers quarterback Jordan Love (MCL), and Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore (hip/hamstring).
Marquise Brown Expected To Miss Chiefs’ Week 1 Matchup
Kansas City’s receiving corps looks quite different from the group it trotted out to open last season. While the Chiefs ultimately won Super Bowl LVIII anyway, they made the expected call to revamp their pass-catching contingent this offseason.
One of the players brought in, as expected, will not be available to open the season. After suffering an injury during the Chiefs’ preseason opener, Marquise Brown is not expected to play in Week 1 against the Ravens, per Andy Reid.
The former Baltimore first-rounder sustained an SC joint injury comparable to Tyreek Hill‘s from 2019. The all-time great went down in Week 1 of the ’19 season and did not return until Week 6 that year. Brown suffered his injury August 10, potentially putting Kansas City’s Week 2 matchup — after the upcoming post-Thursday mini-bye — in play for the free agent signing’s debut.
Reid’s early assessment of Brown’s status comes after SI.com’s Albert Breer indicated the former Ravens and Cardinals starter would miss early-season time. The Chiefs open with the Ravens and Bengals, potentially needing to count on others against Cincinnati as well. Since signing Brown, however, the two-time reigning champions added Xavier Worthy in Round 1, re-signed Mecole Hardman and reunited with JuJu Smith-Schuster after the Patriots cut bait. With Travis Kelce available after missing last season’s opener, the Chiefs appear better equipped than they were against the Lions last year.
While Brett Veach compared the injury to Hill’s 2019 malady, the eighth-year GM is optimistic. Kansas City’s decision to leave Brown on the active roster, rather than use a cutdown-day IR-return designation, reflects the team’s belief the offseason pickup can come back soon. Brown would have been down for at least four games had Kansas City placed him on IR.
“I probably can confidently say it was similar to Tyreek, and I think given that timeline I think it falls within the timeline that Tyreek went through, but I know he’s here every day,” Veach said. “He’s to the point now where he can laugh without pain, so that’s a good thing. He’s certainly trending in the right direction, and look, there was a reason why we didn’t put him on the IR to start the season.”
Brown has gone through some injury bouts as a pro. A Lisfranc issue plagued him as a rookie, though the 2019 draftee played 14 games that year. The Cardinals rarely saw a fully healthy Brown. More foot trouble intervened last season, causing Brown to miss five games in 2022. The Oklahoma alum also played through a heel injury for much of the 2023 season, ultimately missing three games. The Chiefs will hope for a September return.
Latest On Chiefs WR Marquise Brown
The Chiefs’ receiving corps took a hit in their preseason debut when Marquise Brown suffered an SC joint injury. The worst-case scenario has been avoided, though, and as such Brown could still make his Kansas City debut in the season opener.
Brown was hospitalized as a result of the injury, but head coach Andy Reid said on Monday (via Nate Taylor of The Athletic) surgery was not required in this instance. That is a positive development, and Reid added he has not yet ruled Brown out for Week 1. Kansas City’s first game will come on Thursday night to kick off the 2024 campaign.
“Yeah, we’ll see,” Reid said during his press conference (video link). “We’ll see how that goes. But without him in there and his experience and that in the league… we’ve also got some other guys who can step in and play. We’ll be OK there, but we’re pulling for him to get back, obviously.”
Adding at the receiver spot was a key priority for the Chiefs this offseason. Brown signed a one-year deal to operate as a deep threat coming off his three years in Baltimore and two in Arizona. The expiration of his rookie contract did not yield a long-term commitment for the former first-rounder, with consistency being an issue so far in his career. Brown could parlay a productive season in Kansas City into a strong market in 2025, though.
The 27-year-old will be joined by returnees Rashee Rice, Kadarius Toney, Skyy Moore, Mecole Hardman and Justin Watson in the WR room. The Chiefs added further to that group on Day 1 of the draft by selecting Xavier Worthy. The latter broke the all-time 40-yard dash record at the Combine and expectations are high for him to provide Kansas City with a vertical threat early and often in his career.
Brown – who has one 1,000-yard campaign on his resume and has averaged 11.6 yards per catch over his career – will look to give his new team a similar option when healthy. Any long-term absence should not be expected in any case, but Reid’s comments point to Week 1 still being a possibility for Brown.
Chiefs WR Marquise Brown To Miss Time
8:41PM: Schefter provided an update this evening that Brown has arrived back in Kansas City following his release from the Jacksonville-area hospital he spent the night in. Schefter adds that, a day after his diagnosis, Brown’s status for the Chiefs’ regular season opener versus Brown’s former team, the Ravens, is still uncertain at this point.
8:17AM: Chiefs wide receiver Marquise Brown sustained a dislocation of the sternoclavicular (SC) joint in his left shoulder during last night’s preseason opener against the Jaguars, per ESPN’s Adam Teicher. The 27-year-old receiver was hospitalized, because as ESPN injury analyst Stephania Bell writes, SC joint dislocation can be particularly serious due to its potential to impact critical blood vessels. Luckily, Brown was discharged from the hospital this morning and cleared to return to Kansas City, as ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports.
“Hollywood” suffered the injury on the first play of the game, catching an 11-yard pass from quarterback Patrick Mahomes before being tackled and landing awkwardly on the shoulder. Significant injuries to key starters in exhibition contests always lead to a few raised eyebrows, but head coach Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Matt Nagy wanted the first-year Chief to get his feet wet in live action as soon as possible.
The Chiefs’ underwhelming WR corps was a major storyline for the club last season, and while they ultimately secured a Super Bowl victory despite the struggles of some of their top pass catchers, they made a concerted effort to give Mahomes a more explosive arsenal this offseason. That included the acquisition of Brown, whose speed and route-running abilities put one in mind of a lesser version of former Kansas City standout Tyreek Hill.
Interestingly, as Nate Taylor of The Athletic (subscription required) reminds us, Brown’s injury is similar to the one that Hill himself suffered in 2019’s regular season opener (also against the Jaguars). Hill ultimately missed 34 days, and Taylor says the injury will require surgery that comes with a recovery time of four to six weeks. That timeline would force Brown to miss the regular season opener against the Ravens and jeopardize his availability for KC’s next two games as well.
Despite Brown’s speed and separation ability, he has never posted gaudy yards-per-reception numbers and has topped the 1,000-yard mark just once in his five-year career. Of course, he played on run-heavy offenses during his first three seasons in the league as a member of the Ravens – which is what compelled him to request a trade out of Baltimore – and over the last two years with the Cardinals, he played with seven different QBs while dealing with a few injury concerns.
His limited production in the desert put a damper on his market this offseason, and he ultimately signed a one-year, $7MM deal (plus up to $4MM in incentives) with Kansas City, which is a fine place for a talented receiver to play out a pillow contract given the presence of Reid and Mahomes. Brown and Mahomes had reportedly built a strong rapport over the course of offseason practices and training camp, a connection that will now be put on pause for a time.
First-round rookie Xavier Worthy, another speed merchant, will be relied upon more heavily in Brown’s absence. The Chiefs’ expect second-year pro Rashee Rice, the club’s top receiver in 2023, to be suspended for his offseason legal issues, though it remains to be seen when that ban will be handed down.