It looks like the Kansas City Chiefs could welcome both rookie CB Trent McDuffie and third-year LB Willie Gay Jr. to the lineup in Week 7 against the San Francisco 49ers.
McDuffie was designated to return from injured reserve ahead of Week 6, but the Chiefs didn’t activate him after the practice week. He was present for the first practice of the week ahead of Week 7 on Wednesday.
Gay Jr. saw his suspension lifted by the NFL this week, but Andy Reid wouldn’t commit to his return in Week 7. He wanted to “see where he’s at” during the practice week before making that determination.
Speaking to media members on Wednesday, Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo provided an encouraging update on both players.
“Both of them looked good to me (in practice) yesterday,” Spagnuolo said. “Now, I go off of what (VP of Sports Medicine and Performance) Rick (Burkholder) says, in Trent’s (McDuffie) case I go off of what Rick says. And Willie (Gay Jr.), he is a ball of energy. So, he’s going to be (going) 100 miles per hour no matter what. But, he’s rusty, you know. He hasn’t been in there for a month. So, he’ll have to knock some rust off, but we need to do that. We need to get him out there and get rolling.”
It sounds like both players are making progress and will have a chance to play in Week 7. For McDuffie, it’s a matter of getting Burkholder to sign off on his return. For Gay Jr., it’s all about showing that he can shake the rust off during the course of the practice week.
Gay hasn’t played since the Week 2 game against the Los Angeles Chargers. McDuffie’s last snap came in Week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals. Their return would be welcomed against a tough NFC West team in the San Francisco 49ers.
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