The Kansas City Chiefs’ final practice of the regular season is in the books, and so is their last injury report heading into a Week 18 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers. Kansas City has one last contest before the postseason begins, and the team has taken a mostly cautious approach regarding injuries this week.
Earlier in the week, head coach Andy Reid revealed that quarterback Patrick Mahomes wouldn’t play on Sunday. On Friday, he announced that four other players are expected to be inactive on game day. Despite being limited in practice all week with a neck injury, star tight end Travis Kelce wasn’t in that group. Reid gave a classic answer when asked if he’d decided on whether to let Kelce play in Week 18.
“No,” Reid said. “Nothing finalized yet. We’ll see how it all goes, how it works out.”
After Reid’s media address, the Chiefs’ official injury report listed an additional five players as questionable for the Chargers game. Kelce, though, isn’t even carrying a designation into the weekend. Neither is defensive tackle Chris Jones (groin injury), which is a positive sign that both players could potentially be available to play in the regular season finale. Here’s the full breakdown:
QUESTIONABLE: Isiah Pacheco (quad/shoulder), Nick Bolton (wrist/abdomen), Trent McDuffie (shoulder), George Karlaftis (non-injury related – coaching), Mike Danna (NIR – coaching)
DOUBTFUL: Patrick Mahomes (ankle)
OUT: Rashee Rice (hamstring), Kadarius Toney (hip/ankle), Donovan Smith (neck), L’Jarius Sneed (calf)
If Kelce and Jones do see the field to cap off the regular season, don’t necessarily expect them to log a ton of reps. There are two main objectives at center stage if they’re put in the lineup: milestones and incentives. For Kelce, he needs just 16 receiving yards to extend his streak of consecutive 1,000-yard campaigns to eight. That would move his NFL record another year out. For Jones, a half-sack in Week 18 triggers a $1.25 million contract incentive for reaching 10 sacks on the season.
Throughout the week, Reid’s message has mostly been the same. Saying his decision “depends on what the milestone is,” the future Hall of Fame head coach consistently left the door open for both Kelce and Jones to check those final boxes off their lists for the season. Health will always remain the top priority so if both are active, look to see them get involved early and often then potentially concede snaps to younger players if those benchmarks are hit. Things seem to be trending in a positive direction despite a loaded injury report, setting the stage for Kansas City and some of its stars to chase wins on Sunday.
