KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce won’t play in Thursday night’s season opener against the Detroit Lions due to a hyperextended knee injury he suffered earlier this week.
The team elevated tight end Matt Bushman and defensive tackle Matt Dickerson from the practice for the Thursday night game. Bushman will fill the third tight end role behind Noah Gray and Blake Bell.
Kelce hasn’t missed a game due to injury since his rookie season in 2013 when he played in just one game before undergoing microfracture knee surgery. He’s missed just three regular-season games since: the season finales in 2017 and 2020 when the team rested most of its starters and a Week 16 game in 2021 due to COVID-19 protocols.
The Chiefs will also be without All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones, whose holdout entered its 48th day on Thursday. Derrick Nnadi and Tershawn Wharton are the expected starters with Dickerson and rookie Keondre Coburn as the backups. Edge rusher Malik Herring could also kick inside, especially on passing downs. Given the Lions’ passing attack, the Chiefs will likely spend most of the game in sub-packages with an extra defensive back, which would result in a defensive tackle coming off the field.
Two oddities for the Chiefs tonight are the presence of seven wide receivers and six linebackers on the game-day roster. Linebacker Jack Cochrane and Cam Jones will likely figure heavily into special teams but all seven receivers will likely see action in some form. That’s especially true since Kadarius Toney will likely be on a snap count in his return from knee surgery, and both Rashee Rice and Justyn Ross should be featured in a limited number of packages.
The Chiefs’ full inactive list for Thursday night:
- TE Travis Kelce
- OT Lucas Niang
- OT Wanya Morris
- DE BJ Thompson
- DT Neil Farrell
- CB Nic Jones
- CB Darius Rush
With Niang and Morris inactive tonight, the Chiefs will go with Prince Tega Wanogho as the reserve swing tackle along with Nick Allegretti and Mike Caliendo backing up on the interior.
Farrell and Rush, the two players acquired last week via trade and the waiver wire respectively, are inactive in their first game for the Chiefs.
The inactive list for the Lions:
- DL Isaiah Buggs
- CB Steven Gilmore
- DL Brodric Martin
- CB Emmanuel Moseley
- DL Roomoe Okwara
