Darius Harris is Chiefs' next man up at linebacker | KCSN Daily 9.21
Plus the first injury report, transactions, quotes and more Chiefs news.
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The NFL announced on Monday that Chiefs third-year LB Willie Gay Jr. would be suspended for four games. He’ll miss games at Indianapolis, at Tampa, vs. Las Vegas, and vs. Buffalo, before making his return prior to the team’s Week 7 game against San Francisco. So who will Kansas City turn to in Gay Jr.’s absence?
Fourth-year linebacker Darius Harris — the Chiefs’ longest-tenured linebacker — will be the next man up according to Andy Reid.
“You’re aware of Willie’s situation. Darius Harris can fill in there,” Reid said. “We have people that can fill in, but Darius has a chance to step in there.”
An undrafted free agent out of Middle Tennessee in 2019, Harris took a redshirt season as a rookie due to a shoulder injury he suffered in his final season in college. Brett Veach felt he would have been drafted had it not been for the shoulder injury and he felt very fortunate to sign a player that he viewed as a future starter.
Harris was on the roster bubble in Kansas City heading into the 2022 NFL season, but he managed to play his way onto the roster in the final preseason game with a dominant three-play series against the Green Bay Packers.
Harris has two career starts for the Chiefs, both coming in the 2020 NFL season. His first start came in Week 16 against the Atlanta Falcons, where Harris had prepared to play the SAM linebacker position in place of Damien Wilson. However, an injury to Anthony Hitchens thrust him into the MIKE linebacker role very early in the game. He finished that game with four total tackles and a fumble recovery.
It’ll be a bit of a full-circle moment for Harris this week as he’s poised to face former Falcons QB Matt Ryan — who is now the starting QB for the Indianapolis Colts.
One On One:
Former Chiefs OL Jeff Allen and DT Mike DeVito break down Kansas City’s victory over the Los Angeles Chargers from a player's perspective and also give their opinions on other teams around the league and the inconsistencies in the NFL's punishments.
Wednesday Injury report:
Chiefs:
DNP: Harrison Butker (Ankle) and Mike Danna (Calf).
LP: WR Mecole Hardman.
FP: WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling (Hip), LT Orlando Brown Jr. (Knee), RG Trey Smith (Ankle), WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (Shoulder) and WR Justin Watson (Chest).
Colts:
DNP: OT Bernhard Raimann (Ankle).
LP: WR Michael Pittman Jr. (Quad), DT DeForest Buckner (Hip) and DE Yannick Ngakoue (Back).
FP: WR Alec Pierce (Concussion), LB Shaq Leonard (Back), DT Grover Stewart (Shoulder), S Julian Blackmon (Shoulder) and LB Zaire Franklin (Shoulder).
Key:
DNP (Did Not Participate), LP (Limited Participant), FP (Full Participant), NIR (Not Injury Related).
Transactions:
9/21 - Signed to 53-man roster - Rams DE Benton Whitley (Read more here)
Quotable:
“I think the hardest I’ve ever lobbied for it is kind of in the playoffs when it’s like, ‘We’re here now, I want to go get that first down or touchdown.’ But we trust the running backs, we trust in our offensive line. Especially, when you’ve got a guy like (Mike) Burton too, he’s good at getting those first downs. I think, I’ve only technically not got it one time in the red zone and I still think I was in the end zone against the Chargers a couple of years back. So, I’m usually pretty good at the quarterback sneak. Even though he says he doesn’t expect it to happen, I think there’s a time and place for it. I’ll keep that on his radar.” - Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes on whether he’d be willing to do a quarterback sneak again
“He’s doing a good job. He’ll gradually get more every week as we go. So, you know, that game, actually was just how it worked out. He’s getting involved in the gameplan.” - Chiefs HC Andy Reid on the progress made by rookie WR Skyy Moore
Quick hits:
From New Heights: As expected, Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce spoke on their podcast about Derwin James body-slamming Travis in Week 2 on “Thursday Night Football.” The conversation didn’t disappoint.
From the NFL: Chiefs rookie CB Jaylen Watson was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 2 of the 2022 NFL season. His 99-yard interception return for a touchdown was at the heart of this, but he played a really nice game all around too. He becomes just the third cornerback in Kansas City to win the award in the past 10 seasons.
Important dates ahead:
Sunday, Sept. 25 at Noon CT - Week 3: Chiefs vs. Colts - Lucas Oil Stadium - Indianapolis, Indiana
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