COVID And Chiefs: A Mostly Encouraging Update

The Kansas City Chiefs are sitting in a lot better shape than they were early this week, regarding the number of players on the COVID list. Not everyone has been activated off of the list yet. However, most players can return rather quickly with the NFL’s updated return to play protocols. One negative test result from a given player can now lead to them coming off the COVID list.

At the time of our first Chiefs COVID update article on Tuesday, around 10 players were on the list for Kansas City. Which players have been activated off of the list? Inversely, what players are still on the list and won’t play against the Pittsburgh Steelers? We will break each side down, entering the Chiefs vs Steelers matchup. Plus, which adjustments will Kansas City have to make on the coaching staff for this particular game?

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Activated

The highest number of active roster players that were on the Chiefs’ COVID list at once was 13. That was by the end of Tuesday. Here is the list of those 13 players:

WR Josh Gordon

DT Chris Jones

LB Willie Gay

TE Travis Kelce

CB Charvarius Ward

K Harrison Butker

WR Tyreek Hill

CB Rashad Fenton

TE Blake Bell

LB Nick Bolton

OL Lucas Niang

OL Kyle Long

SAF Armani Watts

The top three on the list all entered COVID protocol during the prior week, of course. Each of Gordon, Jones and Gay missed the previous game against the Los Angeles Chargers. Both Gordon and Gay returned to practice on Wednesday and were activated off the COVID list that same day.

On the following day, the Chiefs activated two more off the list. That would be Jones and Ward. So just in a matter of two days, Kansas City had seen their defense become more intact once again.

In addition to those aforementioned four, two more players were activated off the Chiefs’ COVID list in successive days. Tight end Blake Bell was removed from protocol on Friday. Meanwhile, wide receiver Tyreek Hill was removed from protocol on Saturday. This gave Patrick Mahomes his top wide receiver back, just in time for the Steelers matchup.

Finally, the team did activate Kelce, Bolton and Niang on Saturday as well. Their respective situations are much different than Hill, however. Hill cleared protocol and tested negative to get out of it. Whereas with the trio of Kelce, Bolton and Niang, the team is more hopeful that all three will be available come Sunday morning. They are each still in protocol. Though, the team had to activate players by 3 p.m. central time on Saturday, in order for them to be eligible on Sunday. Teams cannot activate players off the list on Sunday game days. If negative test results happen for any or all of Kelce, Bolton and Niang, then they would be officially eligible to play against Pittsburgh. Kansas City will be patiently waiting to see what happens Sunday morning.

UPDATE: just before publishing, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Kelce did not clear protocols and will not play

Still On List

As you can see above, there were four others of those 13 players who won’t play against the Steelers. Butker, Fenton, Long and Watts will not be available on Sunday. But, that is not all.

Punter Tommy Townsend was added to the Chiefs’ COVID list on Friday. He will not be playing, paving the way for his brother Johnny Townsend to punt in his place. The team signed Townsend’s brother, Johnny, to the practice squad late in the week and elevated him to the active roster on Saturday.

Kicker Harrison Butker was ruled out for the Steelers game almost a day after landing on the COVID list. Because he is unvaccinated, the kicker will be forced to miss at least 10 days minimum. Kansas City signed Elliott Fry early in the week to kick in his place. As a result, the Chiefs will have almost an entire different look to their special teams unit when facing Pittsburgh.

Lastly, Fenton, Long and Watts would only need one more negative test to come off of the COVID list. Kansas City obviously did not take the gamble to see if they would be ready come Sunday morning’s test results. Possibly, all three could be activated early this upcoming week, if they continue to show no signs of symptoms.

Coaching Shake Up

The Chiefs announced that the following coaching staff members would be unavailable against the Steelers, due to COVID protocol. This includes three coaches. That would be quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator Mike Kafka, running backs coach Greg Lewis and assistant offensive line coach Corey Matthaei. This will force others on the Chiefs coaching staff like Eric Bieniemy and more to fill multiple roles. Kansas City will of course be looking to get those three coaches out of COVID protocol just as quickly as any player this upcoming week.

Be on the lookout for more FPC Chiefs articles next week. For more great sports and NFL content, stay tuned to Full Press Coverage.

– Braden Holecek is the Kansas City Chiefs managing editor for Full Press Coverage. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @ebearcat9//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Follow @FPC_Chiefs//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js and Facebook.