Chiefs rookie Josh Simmons is slated to start at left tackle Sunday against the Denver Broncos in his return after a four-game absence from the lineup.
Simmons’ return to the lineup comes on the same day the Chiefs added offensive tackle Jaylon Moore to the injury due to an illness. The club listed him as questionable Sunday morning, but he is available to play against the Broncos.
Complete inactive list for the Chiefs:
- RB Isiah Pacheco
- WR Jalen Royals
- TE Jared Wiley
- C/G Hunter Nourzad
- CB Joshua Williams
Simmons last appeared in the team’s Week 5 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Hours before the team’s Week 6 game against the Detroit Lions, Simmons left the team for what the club termed a family issue and personal reasons. He returned to the club during the bye week and took first-team reps at left tackle this week in preparation for today’s start at Denver, a source told Chiefs Digest.
Head coach Andy Reid left the door open for Simmons to start in his Friday press conference.
“Yeah, listen he did good,” Reid said when asked how Simmons performed in practice during the week. “I’m going to get with (offensive line Coach Andy) Heck here and just go back – we look at the video here and just make sure everything is okay there. But he’s done some good things, and we’ll want to check with him first before I say anything here.”
Running back Elijah Mitchell and cornerback Kristian Fulton will be active on Sunday, while veteran cornerback and special teams performer Joshua Williams is inactive. Mitchell will be making his Chiefs debut after signing with the club in the offseason as a free agent. Fulton, also an offseason free-agent acquisition, hasn’t played since the team’s Week 2 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Running back Isiah Pacheco will miss his second game after sustaining a knee injury late in the team’s Week 8 win against the Washington Commanders.
The Denver Broncos made a flurry of roster moves Saturday due a string of injuries and illness affecting the club. The club activated linebacker Garret Wallow from injured reserve and signed cornerback Reese Taylor from their practice squad. Earlier in the week, the Broncos re-signed Lil’Jordan Humphrey from the New York Giants’ practice squad.
The team placed running back J.K. Dobbins on injured reserve with a foot injury and waived wide receiver Trent Sherfield Sr. The team will also be without premier cornerback Pat Surtain, who is dealing with a pectoral injury, and linebacker Alex Singleton, who earlier this week revealed a diagnosis of testicular cancer.
The Broncos’ complete inactive list:
- CB Pat Surtain
- TE Nate Adkins
- OT Geron Christian
- LB Alex Singleton
- LB Jonah Elliss
- DL Jordan Jackson
- DE Sai’von Jones
