Injury optimism for Chiefs heading into Super Bowl | KCSN Daily 2.2
Plus East-West Shrine Bowl prospects, KCSN podcasts, and more Chiefs news.
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Chiefs CEO and Chairman Clark Hunt felt that leading up to the AFC Championship Game and through the game, the team faced a whole season’s worth of injury-related adversity. Between Patrick Mahomes’ ankle, Travis Kelce’s back and all the injuries suffered during the course of the game, he might be onto something.
As Kansas City kicked off their practice work during the Super Bowl LVII bye week, there existed quite a bit of injury-related optimism, specifically at the receiver position. Speaking to reporters on Thursday afternoon, Chiefs HC Andy Reid spoke about two receivers who wouldn’t practice.
“Juju (Smith-Schuster) has some knee swelling, he won’t practice. . . Then, Kadarius Toney, he won’t practice with the ankle sprain,” Reid said. “He’s close and doing well. He actually did the walkthrough today.”
It sounds like Toney’s practice participation could be upgraded to limited sooner-than-later. Meanwhile, Reid was asked point-blank if Smith-Schuster would be able to play in Super Bowl LVII.
“I think he will be able to do that,” Reid told reporters. “He’s in a good place. The main thing is we let (the swelling) calm down. Right now, it’s doing great. So, I’m very optimistic right now. And his want to is all-in there, so we’ll just see where it goes.”
As for Mecole Hardman, Reid was significantly less optimistic about his chances to play in the Super Bowl.
“Yeah, so I think it’ll be tough for him,” Reid said. “I doubt that he’ll make the Super Bowl. Listen, like I said, he was not going to be denied the other day (during the AFC Championship Game). It’s a tribute to the kid. He just pushed himself like no other. He’s a tough nut. He’s all smiles with you, but when it comes down to playing, he’s a tough, tough kid.”
According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, Hardman is still seeking second opinions on his injury to see if he can make it any worse by playing in the Super Bowl. Right now, it appears as if it’d be difficult for him to play in the game.
Thursday Injury Report:
Philadelphia held a walkthrough. Kansas City had a 10-10-10 practice.
Chiefs:
DNP: CB L’Jarius Sneed (Concussion), WR Mecole Hardman (Pelvis), WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (Knee), and WR Kadarius Toney (Ankle/Hamstring).
LP: LB Willie Gay Jr. (Shoulder).
FP: RG Trey Smith (Ankle), QB Patrick Mahomes (Ankle), RB Isiah Pacheco (Wrist), WR Justin Watson (Illness), and RB Jerick McKinnon (Ankles).
Eagles
DNP: G Landon Dickerson (Elbow), OT Lane Johnson (Groin), C Cam Jurgens (Hip), CB Avonte Maddox (Toe), DE Robert Quinn (Foot).
LP: None.
FP: None.
Key:
DNP (Did Not Participate), LP (Limited Participant), FP (Full Participant), NIR (Not Injury Related).
Notes:
The Chiefs are not required to report the practice status of Clyde Edwards-Helaire until he has been activated to the 53-man roster.
KCSN Update - 5 players to watch in East-West Shrine Bowl:
KCSN’s Craig Stout, Matt Lane, and Kent Swanson give five 2023 NFL Draft prospects to watch for in the East-West Shrine Bowl Thursday night.
Other East-West Shrine Bowl players to watch:
Wake Forest WR A.T. Perry (East)
Fresno State WR Jalen Cropper (East)
Penn State iOL Juice Scruggs (East)
Louisville OL Trevor Reid (East)
West Virginia DT Dante Stills (East)
Texas DT Moro Ojomo (East)
Coastal Carolina CB Lance Boykin (East)
Ole Miss S A.J. Finley (East)
Washington OL Jaxson Kirkland (West)
Pace OL Jacky Chen (West)
Florida WR Justin Shorter (West)
Harvard EDGE Truman Jones (West)
Florida EDGE Brenton Cox Jr. (West)
Southern Miss CB Eric Scott Jr. (West)
Louisiana Tech CB Myles Brooks (West)
Florida S Trey Dean III (West)
Watch the East-West Shrine Bowl - Thursday, Feb. 2 at 8:30 PM ET on NFL Network.
(Photo via NFL)
Remember, vote for Kansas City Chiefs 2022 NFL Fan of the Year Nominee Dr. Amy Patel. You can vote multiple times until polls close on Wednesday, Feb. 9. Click the image above to listen to KCSN’s BJ Kissel exclusive interview with Dr. Patel.
One On One - Chiefs shift focus to Super Bowl LVII after beating Bengals
Former Kansas City Chiefs offensive lineman Jeff Allen and defensive lineman Mike DeVito discuss the Chiefs' win in the AFC Championship game vs. the Bengals and talk about what it's like to play in the Super Bowl as well as how it feels to lose in the AFC.
Quotable:
“Yeah, I think you’ve seen over time, whenever a guy like Doug Williams or Michael Vick or Donavan McNabb goes out and plays great football, it give guys like me and Jalen (Hurts) chances to have this platform and have this spot on an NFL team. So if we can continue to show that we can consistently be great, I think it will just continue to open doors for other kids growing up to follow their dreams and be a quarterback of an NFL team. It’s good that we have guys like Jalen (Hurts) on the other side because he’s a great person and obviously a great quarterback.” - Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes on playing in first Super Bowl with two Black starting quarterbacks
Yeah, I think we have the ability to go against that kind of offense a little bit at the beginning of the season in Arizona. They’re very similar in terms of getting the ball on the perimeter. But again, we don’t really see that a lot. It puts a lot of pressure on our D-Ends, edge defenders, corners tackling on pull schemes. Again, give them a lot of credit, they find matchups, then exploit them. They do a hell of a job of it. We’ve just got to come in and play hard. - Chiefs LB Nick Bolton on the Eagles offense
Quick Hits:
From the Chiefs: The team is going through Super Bowl media day, shooting photos and videos for promotional purposes. It appears the team will be wearing white-on-red away jerseys for Super Bowl LVII.
From the practice field: KC Star reporter Jesse Newell shared some photos from the Chiefs’ 10-10-10 practice today.




From the equipment staff: Chiefs equipment manager Allen Wright shared a story with fans about a tradition inspired by the great Derrick Thomas.


From Chickie’s and Pete’s Sports Bar in Philly: Donna Kelce and Jason Kelce went to a bar to watch the Chiefs-Bengals AFC title game. Their reactions to game-winner were classic.

From ESPN: Jeff Darlington shared some details from a conversation he had with Patrick Mahomes regarding Tom Brady.


Important dates ahead:
Reece’s Senior Bowl - Saturday, Feb. 4 at 2:30 PM ET.
NFL Honors - Thursday, Feb. 9 at 9:00 PM ET.
Super Bowl LVII - Sunday, Feb. 12 at 6:30 PM ET.
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