The Kansas City Chiefs were back on the practice fields at Missouri Western State University on Wednesday for their second day of padded practices.
Tyreek Hill was not in pads for practice, suggesting he won’t get any work in on Wednesday. Hill left practice early on Tuesday due to knee tendinitis. The team doesn’t expect the injury to be a serious issue and they’re going to hold him out of practice as long as necessary. He was all smiles coming out to practice this morning, so that’s typically a good sign.
DeAndre Baker also didn’t have pads on for practice today. The second-year corner is returning from a tibia fracture, so it’s possible he’s just getting the day off. Chiefs HC Andy Reid mentioned his progress on Tuesday.
“Baker’s coming off that injury, so it’s good to see him working and challenging himself,” Reid said. “That’s not an easy thing to do, and I just look at the progress he’s made from the rookie camp to now and every day he’s getting a little bit better. And I know he’s pushing through some fatigue, you get tired, so my hat goes off to him for that.”
Returning to practice for Kansas City was RB Darwin Thompson, who spent the first six practices of training camp on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. Charvarius Ward was also back on the field after an eye issue kept him out of practice on Tuesday.
Willie Gay Jr. briefly left practice with a trainer. He was shaken up after a play and appeared to go through concussion testing. He was cleared and eventually returned to practice. Later, at the end of one of the team’s 7-on-7 periods, Gay went back to the training tent. He eventually walked up the hill and left practice. Chiefs PR confirmed that Gay is in the concussion protocol.
Chiefs second-year LB Willie Gay Jr., who has enjoyed a tremendous camp, now heading up the hill with a trainer. pic.twitter.com/DT10GLjBCI
— Herbie Teope (@HerbieTeope) August 4, 2021
Alex Okafor also took himself off the practice field and walked up the hill alone without a trainer. Chiefs’ PR confirmed a hamstring injury for Okafor.
Juan Thornhill (groin), Chad Williams (groin), Mike Remmers (back), Kyle Long (tibia), Nick Keizer (back spasms) and Malik Herring (knee) all remained absent from practice on Wednesday. Anthony Hitchens and Ben Niemann seemed to both be back out there participating in a limited capacity.
The team will be back at practice tomorrow at 9:15 a.m. sharp with more work in pads.
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