The Kansas City Chiefs have been struggling with COVID cases recently, but new updates suggest the team may be on the mend.
The NFL’s COVID list is growing with each day this December, with Dalvin Cook one of the bigger stars to join the list ahead of the weekend.
Twelve NFL teams made adjustments to their COVID/injury list on Dec. 23, including the Vikings’ addition of Dalvin Cook, the Titans’ addition of Kendall Lamm, and the Cowboys’ addition of Mailk Hooker.
Fortunately for the Chiefs, it seems the spread of the virus has been limited over the past two days. Ian Rapoport reported that there have been no new cases for the Chiefs over the past two days.
Chiefs see no new COVID cases as team recovers from major COVID hit
Although the team hasn’t seen any new cases in the past two days, the team is still reeling from recent diagnoses in the past ten days.
It’s possible Tyreek Hill will be out during their Dec. 26 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers after he received a positive result on Tuesday. Kicker Harrison Butker received a positive result on Monday.
Perhaps the biggest blow to the team was when Travis Kelce was placed on the COVID list on Monday.
While these players were placed on the list this week, it’s still unclear exactly when they will return. As Patrick Allen notes, Charvarius Ward is now off of the COVID list, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that Kelce will also be off the list before Sunday’s game. It all depends on when a player got COVID, which only adds to the confusion and disarray the recent NFL COVID outbreak has caused.
Charvarius Ward is off the Covid list. But just because he went on the same day as Kelce, it doesn’t mean Kelce or Hill (who went on the list Tuesday) will play. As I mentioned, it’s about WHEN a player actually got Covid to start. Ward getting off means nothing for the others. https://t.co/Nrl3VGJdPu
— Patrick Allen (@RPatrickAllen) December 23, 2021
Chiefs fans remain optimistic that Kelce and Hill could return before Sunday, because it is theoretically possible. The next few days will clarify whether or not they’ll be able to clear the list.
Summarized as best as possible:
“Chiefs remain optimistic both Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce can clear protocols [ahead of Week 16]
Titans have until 3 PM to activate A.J. Brown off IR – he’s neither in nor out at this time, but team has some optimism”pic.twitter.com/JutDGZnEEG
— Adam Koffler (@AdamKoffler) December 23, 2021
While a postponement could offer even better news for the Chiefs, their limited outbreak could mean that their Sunday game won’t be pushed as several Week 15 games were.
Kelce and Hill are in COVID protocol. The line has moved from Steelers +10.5 down to +7.5. The NFL should NOT move this game for competitive balance reasons. If the Chiefs have enough players, the game should be played at 4:25 Sunday. No exceptions.
— Andrew Fillipponi (@ThePoniExpress) December 21, 2021
Although the Chiefs could be without Kelce and Hill, the good news is that the spread seems to be limited — meaning Patrick Mahomes is still set to start on Sunday.
