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Kansas City Chiefs HC Andy Reid addressed the media for the first time since his postgame chat with reporters after the win over the Dallas Cowboys in Week 11.
While Reid prefaced his presser by saying he wouldn’t have a full rundown of the injuries until later today, he did provide a few key updates on some players dealing with injuries. He started by addressing the concerns on the offensive line, speaking on right tackle Lucas Niang who has missed the past two games with a rib injury suffered in Week 9.
“Yeah, well, he was making good progress prior to the bye,” Reid said of Niang. “I’ll get a report today on him. So, I think there’s a chance he’s ready. I can’t tell you until I see him.”
The Chiefs also have another decision to make on the offensive line, with Kyle Long’s 21-day practice window slated to expire on Tuesday. The Chiefs must either activate him to the 53-man roster or choose to send him to injured reserve for the remainder of the season. The latter would mean that Long will have never played a snap for Kansas City this season.
“Yeah, so listen, he’s worked his tail off during his recovery time here,” Reid said. “We’ll see how all of that goes here. We’re sorting through all of that today, but I appreciate having him here and doing what he’s been doing too and how he’s handled it. So, we’ll make the decision — and I leave that up to Brett (Veach) and the doctors and that — but we’ll make that decision here today.”
Reid didn’t seem to tip the team’s hand one way or the other, leaving room for both scenarios. We might not see the team’s decision for Long transpire on the transaction report until tomorrow.
Finally, Reid provided a brief update on Tyrann Mathieu, who played through swelling in one of his surgically-repaired knees against the Cowboys in Week 11.
“He came out, actually, OK,” Reid said of Mathieu. “He was able to push himself through, which was amazing. I mean, he’s a tough kid, so tough-minded. That also carries over to the defense. Our players knew that he wasn’t quite where he wanted to be. He didn’t really say anything, just kind of pushed himself through.”
Mathieu seems no worse for wear after pushing himself to play in Week 11. That’s a positive because they’re going to need the defense at full strength for the final six games of the season.
Overall, this team is in a good spot after the bye week, with the majority of Chiefs players entering the final six-game stretch healthy.
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