KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Chiefs placed two defensive starers on injured reserve Tuesday, defensive end Allen Bailey and linebacker Justin March-Lillard, among a flurry of roster moves that also sent running back Knile Davis to Green Bay for an undisclosed draft pick.
JAKE GATCHELL/ THE CAPITAL-JOURNAL
Chiefs’ linebacker Justin March runs a drill Friday morning during organized team events at the Chiefs training facility.
Bailey sustained a shoulder injury during Kansas City’s 26-20 win over Oakland. March-Lillard suffered a hand injury, a team spokesperson confirmed. The team also placed defensive lineman Nick Williams on waivers.
The team promoted three players from the practice squad, including linebacker Ramik Wilson.
Wilson battled with March-Lillard through training camp and the preseason for the starting inside linebacker role alongside Derrick Johnson. The team waived Wilson during the final roster cut down and signed him to the practice squad before week one.
The team also promoted from the practice squard Rakeem Nunez-Roches and cornerback Terrance Mitchell. The Chiefs drafted Nunez-Roches in the sixth round of the 2015. The team waived the defensive lineman prior to the second game of the season to make room for offensive lineman Jordan Devey. They signed him to practice squad after clearing waivers.
Mitchell, a 5-11, 190-pound cornerback from Oregon, signed with the Chiefs practice squad last month. The Dallas Cowboys selected Mitchell in the seventh round of the 2014 draft.
The third-year veteran played eight games for Dallas and the Chicago Bears last season, tallying 13 tackles along with a sack, an interception, a forced fumble and three passes defended.
The team also announced the free agent signing of defensive end Kendall Reyes. The 6-4, 300-pound Reyes played four seasons for the San Diego Chargers, who selected him with the 17th pick of the second round of the 2012 draft.
Reyes has 66 games played with 50 starts in his career, tallying 84 solo tackles and 13.5 sacks. The fifth-year veteran signed as a free agent with Washington in March, and played only two games with three tackles before being released. He missed the first two games of the season with a groin injury.
The loss of Bailey on the defensive line costs the Chiefs a valuable piece in the team’s pass rush. The team’s acquisition of Reyes and promotion of Nunez-Roches favors defensive lineman with a history of putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks.
The promotion of Mitchell also raises questions about the health of the team’s starting cornerbacks, Marcus Peters and Phillip Gaines. Peters left Sunday’s game against Oakland with what the team termed a stinger. Gaines also left the game early after re-aggravating a knee injury stemming back to last season’s ACL surgery.
The Chiefs also announced the trade of running back Davis to the Green Bay Packers in exchange for an undisclosed draft, reportedly a conditional seventh round pick in 2018.
