The Divisional Round of the NFL playoffs is right around the corner, although neither the Kansas City Chiefs nor Buffalo Bills will be fully healthy for their Sunday matchup.
On Friday morning, Bills head coach Sean McDermott ruled out a handful of players for the weekend. The list includes wide receiver Gabe Davis, who has delivered multiple impact performances against the Chiefs throughout his career. Cornerback Christian Benford, safety Taylor Rapp and linebacker Baylon Spector are also expected to be out
According to Reid, second-year wide receiver Skyy Moore will not be activated off the injured reserve list in time for Sunday’s game. The head coach says his former second-round pick “tweaked” his strained knee a bit in practice on Thursday, so the team didn’t have him participate on Friday. In 14 games during the regular season, Moore hauled in 21 passes for 244 yards and a touchdown. Moore is wrapping up week one of hi 21-day practice window before the team must decide on whether to activate him.
At the time of his media availability, Reid didn’t provide much of an update on the rest of the wideout room. Kadarius Toney (hip/ankle) and Justyn Ross (hamstring) both missed Wild Card Weekend’s win over the Miami Dolphins and have been limited participants in practice early in the week. Should either or both be available on Sunday, they’d provide intriguing skill sets to utilize against a banged-up Buffalo defense.
Reid also shared that rookie left tackle Wanya Morris will miss Sunday’s outing. Morris, who suffered a concussion in Week 18, didn’t play in the Wild Card round but returned to full participation in practice on Wednesday. Unfortunately for the third-round pick, he was downgraded to limited on Thursday and didn’t practice at all on Friday. Kansas City will once again lean on veteran Donovan Smith to start while Morris continues to work through return-to-play protocol
Along the defensive line, nose tackle Derrick Nnadi won’t play in the Chiefs’ upcoming win-or-go-home contest. The fifth-year man played just seven snaps last weekend before exiting with a tricep injury. Nnadi, who didn’t practice this week, will be at least partially replaced by Mike Pennel on the interior of the defensive line. Reid said Pennel, a current member of the practice squad, will be elevated to the active roster and should rotate in on Sunday.