Chiefs without McKinnon and Toney; Raiders may have Jacobs for the Christmas game
(AP) — KANSAS CITY, MO The Las Vegas Raiders anticipate having Josh Jacobs back on the field when the venerable AFC West rivals play on Monday at Arrowhead Stadium. The Kansas City Chiefs will be without three key offensive players due to injuries.
The Chiefs ruled out injured wide receiver Kadarius Toney on Saturday due to a hip injury, as well as left tackle Donovan Smith, who will miss his third straight game due to a neck injury, and third-down back Jerick McKinnon due to a groin injury.
The loss of Toney further thins out a receiver corps that has struggled this season, as the Chiefs placed Skyy Moore on injured reserve earlier this week due to a knee injury. In particular, Toney has had a difficult season; he has made numerous drops, two of which were picked off, and in the final moments of a game against the Bills, his offsides penalty negated a go-ahead touchdown.
Richie James has mostly played on special teams, but Kansas City coach Andy Reid stated this week that he anticipates James to be more involved in the offense. In addition, Justin Watson should see more snaps in the absence of Moore or Toney.
Matt Nagy, the offensive coordinator, stated this week that James is effective in the slot. “You have to beat man inside and outside leverage when you’re in the slot, and you want to be able to feel defenses and zones.” He performed admirably. He suffered some wounds before recovering. I believe he has handled the situation in a very professional manner.
Mecole Hardman, a wide receiver who has been on injured reserve due to a thumb issue, is one player the Chiefs hope to have back soon. He started working out this week, giving Kansas City a 21-day window to decide whether to activate him or end his season. However, he was not allowed to play in the Christmas Day game against the Raiders.
Positive injury news for the Chiefs came from Isiah Pacheco, who returned from a shoulder injury that kept him out of the last two games and allowed him to practice fully this week. His last outing against Green Bay saw him rush for 118 yards and a touchdown.
Reid stated on Saturday, “Yeah, I think it’ll be a full workload, but with that, we have backup relief if he needs to come out. We have a great deal of faith in Clyde (Edwards-Helaire) to step in.
Due to a quad injury that kept him out of the Raiders’ last game against the Chargers, star running back Jacobs is listed as questionable on the other sideline. To maintain their slim hopes of making the playoffs, the Raiders must defeat Kansas City, and interim coach Antonio Pierce has stated that he expects “all the guys to play.”
Tight end Michael Mayer, who missed all of practice this week due to a toe injury, is the only player that Las Vegas has ruled out.
Pierce stated on Saturday, “Yeah, unless otherwise, I expect all the guys to play.” It’s that kind of game, after all. Put on your suit. Why are you waiting? Put on your suit. Come on, let’s play football.
When asked if Jacobs was well and prepared to go, Pierce said, “Nobody’s healthy.” All set to go? We are prepared to leave.
