Chiefs DE Frank Clark comes clean about lingering neck injury

Kansas City Chiefs DE Frank Clark has been dealing with burning sensation and numbness as the result of a pinched nerve in his neck.

After the loss to the Titans, Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Frank Clark was candid about the mysterious injury he’s dealt with all season. We learned ahead of Week 8 that he’d been dealing with a neck injury, but there wasn’t much information on when it happened or how long it’d been going on. It wasn’t something that popped up after Week 7 against the Broncos, which Andy Reid made clear.

This injury would lead to Clark missing two games. Clark first popped up on the injury report with a neck injury ahead of the Chiefs’ Week 2 matchup against the Raiders. Most thought little of it because he was a full participant, but according to Clark, this injury has been going on since training camp and it has impacted his play.

“I’ve been playing kind of timid this whole season,” Clark said. “That’s why I’ve been kind of slow. I’ve had a pinched nerve since the end of training camp. I’ve been playing through it. It just got to the point where [it] was so serious it was sending burning sensations down my arm. My two fingers were going numb. I had to take precautions, get checked out and make sure everything that I was doing football-wise wasn’t going to affect my life after football.”

Going back to training camp, Clark dealt with a wrist injury and an illness, but the neck injury was never on an official injury report. It’s likely that he didn’t receive treatment for it until Week 2 of the regular season, when he first was spotted on the report.

Those are scary symptoms that Clark claims to be dealing with, and it makes sense why he’d take the utmost caution in his return to play. He’s been the subject of a lot of criticism, and it seems like it all finally boiled over for Clark in the disappointing loss to the Titans.

Reid continued to be optimistic during his Monday conference call that this wouldn’t be a long-term problem for Clark.

“I know that (trainer) Rick (Burkholder) will keep a close eye on it, which he has been doing,” Reid said of Clark’s injury. “Those things you can help with treatment and all of that. They’ll work on that.”

Clark’s health is paramount for the Chiefs because they’ve lost defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah, their sack leader, for the season with a torn pectoral. With Alex Okafor also dealing with a high ankle sprain, the Chiefs are quickly running out of bodies at defensive end.

Bills playoff picture: Post-Week 10 recap of AFC teams ‘in the hunt’

The Bills’ loss to the Cleveland Browns hurt. All loses tend to do that in the NFL, but this one hurt a little more. The feeling that Buffalo let this one get away, combined with other teams around the AFC playoff picture scoring some wins of their …

The Bills’ loss to the Cleveland Browns hurt.

All loses tend to do that in the NFL, but this one hurt a little more. The feeling that Buffalo let this one get away, combined with other teams around the AFC playoff picture scoring some wins of their own, things didn’t go well for Western New York in Week 10.

Here’s a recap of the latest happenings in the AFC playoff picture:

AFC seeding:

New England Patriots (8-1)
Baltimore Ravens (7-2)
Houston Texans (6-3)
Kansas City Chiefs (6-4)
Buffalo Bills (6-3)
Pittsburgh Steelers (5-4)
Oakland Raiders (5-4)
Indianapolis Colts (5-4)
Tennessee Titans (5-5)
Jacksonville Jaguars (4-5)

In the hunt teams recap:

Playoff teams recap:

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Chargers training in Colorado ahead of Mexico City showdown with Chiefs

The Los Angeles Chargers will work at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs ahead of Week 11 vs. the Kansas City Chiefs in Mexico City.

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The Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers are preparing to take a road trip south of the border.

In Week 11, both teams will face off 7,200 feet above sea level at Mexico City, Mexico in a highly anticipated matchup at Estadio Azteca. The Chiefs’ opponents have a unique plan to prepare for the altitude change.

In order to get acclimated to playing in a higher altitude, the Chargers are taking a trip to Colorado Springs, Colorado. They will practice for four days at 6,000 feet at the Air Force Academy in hopes that it will give them an advantage against the Chiefs in Week 11.

Los Angeles.
Colorado Springs.
Mexico City.

LEGGO ‼️ pic.twitter.com/3icsOPPgCR

— Los Angeles Chargers (@Chargers) November 11, 2019

The Los Angeles Rams tried a similar strategy in 2018 ahead of their Mexico City game against the Chiefs. The game was ultimately moved back to Los Angeles and the Rams stayed in Colorado as their home state dealt with wildfires.

Kansas City will stick to their normal weekly schedule and prepare for this game as they usually would a Monday Night Football game. Andy Reid is just old-fashioned like that. He spoke a bit about the decision to not prepare for the altitude last season.

“We were going to stay here for practice,” Reid said. “Not really. We did a bunch of studies and talked to people in the offseason and felt like it was best to stay here and practice. We really haven’t had a change much other than going to a hotel in Los Angeles, but other than that, not a lot of changes.”

Their decision to stay in Kansas City isn’t without its research. Meanwhile, this is a must-win game for the Chargers and it feels like they’re going to pull out all of the stops. You can catch this primetime showdown between AFC West rivals on ESPN on Monday at 7:20 P.M. CT.

AFC playoff picture: Chiefs complicate things for themselves in Week 10

An updated look at where the Kansas City Chiefs stand in the AFC playoff seeding.

The Kansas City Chiefs dropped a winnable game against the Tennessee Titans, resulting in a 6-4 record through 10 weeks to start the season. This is a game that fans will likely be looking back on, especially depending on the results from the next few weeks. The loss significantly lessens their chances of securing a first-round bye in the AFC playoffs and opens the door for several teams that are in the hunt.

If the playoffs started tomorrow, here’s what the AFC seeding would look like:

In the playoffs:

New England Patriots: 8-1
Baltimore Ravens: 7-2
Houston Texans: 6-3
Kansas City Chiefs: 6-4
Buffalo Bills: 6-3
Pittsburgh Steelers: 5-4

In the hunt:

Oakland Raiders: 5-4
Indianapolis Colts: 5-4
Tennessee Titans: 5-5
Jacksonville Jaguars: 4-5

What lies ahead:

The Chiefs will head to Mexico City to face the Chargers for Monday Night Football in Week 11.

As I mentioned earlier, the loss to the Titans significantly lessens the chance to secure a first-round bye week and the No. 2 seed. The Colts, Titans and Texans all hold head-to-head tiebreakers over Kansas City. That means if the Chiefs finish with the same record as any of those AFC South teams they would have priority in seeding. Before we even get to that point, the Ravens would have to fumble a few games heading into the postseason, which seems unlikely.

The Chiefs should look to take care of business against their AFC West opponents in the coming weeks. If they run the table the AFC West is theirs, along with a guaranteed spot in the playoffs. The Week 13 game against the Raiders very well could determine who comes away with the AFC West division this season.

Remaining opponents:

Week 11 @ Los Angeles Chargers (at Mexico City): 4-6
BYE
Week 13 vs. Oakland Raiders: 5-4
Week 14 @ New England Patriots: 8-1
Week 15 vs. Denver Broncos: 3-6
Week 16 @ Chicago Bears: 4-5
Week 17 vs. Los Angeles Chargers

6 reasons the 2019 Kansas City Chiefs look like the 2018 New England Patriots

The Chiefs lost their week 10 matchup to the Titans and now it’s time to worry about Kansas City. They haven’t looked the same. Their offensive line has some questions. Their defense has even more questions. The Raiders are ready to sneak past them in the west. Everything that can go wrong in Kansas City is going wrong . . . but there’s good news! There are a lot of weird similarities between the 2019 Chiefs and the 2018 Patriots. That Patriots team won a Super Bowl.

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Report: Chiefs DE Emmanuel Ogbah to have season-ending surgery on torn pec

It sounds like the MRI results are in for Kansas City Chiefs DE Emmanuel Ogbah and the news is not good.

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The Kansas City Chiefs defense looks to be losing one of their pass rushers for the remainder of 2019.

Yesterday evening, Andy Reid let us know that they believed DE Emmanuel Ogbah had suffered a torn pectoral muscle in the Chiefs’ 35-32 loss to the Tennessee Titans. It appears that he’s since had an MRI to confirm the initial diagnosis, and according to a new report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Ogbah will require season-ending surgery.

It’s not an ideal situation for Kansas City as Ogbah has been a big surprise. He came over to the Chiefs in a player-for-player swap with the Browns where the Chiefs sent safety Eric Murray to Cleveland. Since the trade, Ogbah has seen one of the best seasons in his career, matching his career sack total of 5.5 in just four starts and 10 total appearances with Kansas City.

Chiefs’ DE Emmanuel Ogbah will undergo season-ending surgery this week for a torn pectoral muscle he suffered during Sunday’s loss at Tennessee, per source. Ogbah, who leads KC in sacks, is scheduled to be a free agent this off-season but is expected to be recovered by then.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 11, 2019

This could be the last we see of Ogbah with the Chiefs as he’s currently slated to become a free agent in 2020. Kansas City could try and work out a deal to re-sign him but they’re going to be up against the cap trying to fit big contracts for DT Chris Jones and QB Patrick Mahomes.

Replacing Ogbah’s production in the meantime will be a difficult task for the Chiefs as they’ve seen quite a bit of attrition along the defensive line already. Starters Alex Okafor and Frank Clark have both dealt with injuries throughout the season.

Right now, there isn’t a clear move to make when Kansas City decides to send Ogbah to IR. They could potentially elevate Cameron Malveaux from the practice squad or bring in some free agents for tryouts. One thing we’ll likely see is more snaps from Jones at defensive end for the time being. He’s played there several times over the past two weeks due to injuries along the defensive line.

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Chiefs send OL Martinas Rankin to IR, sign OT Jackson Barton

The Kansas City Chiefs have sent Martinas Rankin to IR and signed an offensive tackle from the Indianapolis Colts practice squad.

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The Kansas City Chiefs made a pair of roster moves on Monday. Following the report that offensive lineman Martinas Rankin suffered a season-ending knee injury, we now have some clarity on that situation. According to the NFL’s transaction report, the team has opted to place Rankin on the injured reserve list.

Rankin joined the Chiefs this season in a trade that sent running back Carlos Hyde to the Texans. He’d been starting at left guard since Week 6 after Andrew Wylie suffered an ankle sprain. The move to place Rankin on IR suggests his season is over.

In a corresponding move, the Chiefs have signed a rookie offensive tackle from the Indianapolis Colts’ practice squad. Jackson Barton was a seventh-round draft pick by Indianapolis out of Utah. His brother Cody plays linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks. Jackson was making well over the weekly minimum on the practice squad, with the Colts shelling out $20,000 a week to keep him there. That alone shows you what they thought of him.

Barton didn’t make the 53-man roster out of the preseason and spent the first 10 weeks of the season on the Indianapolis practice squad. At 6 feet 7 and 302 pounds, Barton is a big body that is better suited playing tackle than he is in the offensive interior. He has experience playing both left and right tackle.

Given the injury concerns for the Chiefs, Barton might have to get up to speed quickly. Eric Fisher has been out recovering from a groin injury, and Mitchell Schwartz was dinged up in Week 10. If Barton fills a similar role to Rankin in Kansas City, expect him to be listed on the depth chart as the backup right tackle with the ability to fill in at other spots as well.

Report: Chiefs LG Martinas Rankin’s knee injury believed to be season-ending

Martinas Rankin’s injury appears to be a serious one that could cost him the remainder of the 2019 season.

The Kansas City Chiefs fear the worst with left guard Martinas Rankin’s knee injury.

According to a new report from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the belief is that Rankin’s knee injury will end his 2019 season. Rapoport described the injury as an injury to his patella. He also says the Chiefs are still awaiting the results of an MRI.

Rankin joined Kansas City via Houston in a player-for-player trade involving RB Carlos Hyde. He’s actually been a bright spot along the offensive line after struggling early in his career with the Texans

The Chiefs have suffered multiple injuries along the offensive line this season. Their starting left guard, Andrew Wylie, suffered an ankle injury in Week 5. Rankin filled in for Wylie, starting the last five games for the Chiefs, beginning with their Week 6 game against Houston.

Now it appears the remainder of his 2019 season is in doubt and losing him will be a big blow to Kansas City’s offensive line depth.

#Chiefs OL Martinas Rankin, who came to KC in the Carlos Hyde trade with the #Texans, suffered a knee injury that is likely season-ending, source said. He’ll have an MRI today, but the belief is he suffered an injury to his patella.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 11, 2019

“…Rankin hurt his right knee,” Reid said following Sunday’s loss. “We’ll know more tomorrow once we get the MRI.”

Andy Reid was brief on Sunday when it came to Rankin’s injury, but you already knew this had the chance to be serious when the cart came out for Rankin during the game. Pending MRI results it appears like this promising young player will have to focus on his rehab and recovery moving forward.

Part of the reason that Rankin was so appealing in trade is because of his contract. He’ll remain under team control through 2021 at the very least. There’s no reason to believe that he won’t be able to return to action for Kansas City next season and pick up right where he left off.

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Who was emergency OL for Chiefs in Week 10 against Titans?

We now know who would have played if the Kansas City Chiefs needed an emergency offensive lineman vs. the Tennessee Titans

The Kansas City Chiefs suffered some attrition along the offensive line late in the second quarter against the Tennessee Titans in Week 10.

Back-to-back injuries occurred at the right tackle position that left the Chiefs dangerously thin along the offensive line. First, starting right tackle Mitchell Schwartz suffered an injury, which ended his long consecutive snap streak. A play later, it was left guard Martinas Rankin who had shifted to right tackle. He was injured on his first snap at the position.

Kansas City only had seven offensive linemen dressed to play on Sunday. Starting left tackle Eric Fisher and starting right guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif were both ruled out ahead of the game. With the two injuries to Schwartz and Rankin, the Chiefs would be faced with an emergency situation had they suffered another injury.

So who would have been the emergency backup offensive lineman for the Chiefs had they suffered an injury? Andy Reid let us in on the doomsday plan during his Monday conference call.

“It would be one of the tight ends,” Reid said via 810 Sports Radio’s Soren Petro.

Reid didn’t exactly say which tight end it would be for the Chiefs, so you’ll have to use your imagination on that. Blake Bell would stand to reason, given his usage in blocking scenarios, but he was also banged up with an ankle injury. Travis Kelce is the most veteran tight end on the team and probably the most comfortable with the blocking schemes.

Luckily, the Chiefs didn’t have to try this out. Schwartz was able to return to the game after just a few snaps. I have a feeling this scenario would be much less enjoyable to watch than seeing emergency third-string QB Anthony Sherman run the Chiefs offense, which could have happened in Week 7 against the Denver Broncos.

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes continues to break NFL records

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes’ performance on Sunday helped him leave his mark on NFL history yet again.

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If you’re in need of an indication that Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is back and as good as ever, this should do the trick.

Mahomes made his 25th career start on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans. It also marked his return from a kneecap dislocation. Despite the Chiefs’ loss, Mahomes completed 36-of-50 passes for 446 yards and three touchdowns.

A lot of NFL records have crumpled at the hands of Mahomes, and he added several more on Sunday. According to NFL Communications, Mahomes now holds the record for the most passing yards through 25 career games with 8,007. Hall of Famer Kurt Warner is the only player who comes close to that in 25 games, with just under 7,400 passing yards.

That isn’t the only record Mahomes surpassed. He also passed Dolphins legend Dan Marino for the most passing touchdowns through 25 career games with 68. Marino had 65 in his first 25 career games.

And that’s not all. According to Chiefs team reporter Matt McMullen, Mahomes has the highest passer rating and the most completions in his first 25 starts of any player in NFL history. He’s essentially leading all quarterbacks in four of the most meaningful passing categories through 25 games.

Finally, Sunday’s game marked Mahomes’ 16th with at least 300 passing yards. It was enough to surpass Warner for the most games with at least 300 passing yards in a player’s first 25 games.

You won’t see Mahomes bragging about these individual accolades, especially when the Chiefs aren’t winning. Still, it’s awe-inspiring how every time Mahomes steps on the football field he manages to break another record and etch his name in the NFL history books. You can rest assured this won’t be the last time you hear about Mahomes surpassing a record. The next one may even happen as early as Week 11 against the Chargers in Mexico City.

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