Jamaal Charles has surgery for knee problem discovered after Oakland game

Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles had its most extensive playing time of the season at Oakland on Oct. 16. He logged nine rushing attempts for 33 yards and caught a pass for 14 yards. Although he had played the previous game in Pittsburgh, the effort against the Raiders seemed like the re-boot of Charles’ career after he missed more than half of last season because of a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

Turns out, the Oakland trip was the start of his trouble.

Charles had exploratory surgery on his right knee Wednesday by orthopedic surgeon James Andrews.

“It’s thought that he might have a meniscus tear in that knee,” Chiefs head athletic trainer Rick Burkholder said. “He had some damage in that meniscus before. Dr. Andrews wants to see if it’s got a little flap in it or something that’s causing his discomfort.”

Since returning from rehabilitation, Charles experienced pain in both knees, the right one that was damaged last year and the left knee, in which he tore the ACL in 2011, Burkholder said.

“He’s had pain in both knees, and we’ve tried to get a handle on it,” Burkholder said. “After the Oakland game, he had more discomfort than he was having.”

The Chiefs eased up on Charles’ practice routine. Sometimes he was a full practice participant, sometimes limited and occasionally not practicing.

Finally, the Chiefs shut down Charles after he logged two snaps and one rushing attempt against the Saints on Oct. 23.

Charles is expected to be placed on injured reserve, according to ESPN.

Teams are allowed to bring one player back from injured reserve per season, a provision the Chiefs have not used yet. But with Charles undergoing a second surgery, it’s unclear whether that will prove to be an option.

Charcandrick West looms as the starter for Sunday’s game against Jacksonville at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs haven’t ruled out Spencer Ware, who didn’t finish last week’s game at Indianapolis because of a concussion, but Ware wasn’t expected to practice on Wednesday.

The Chiefs signed running back Bishop Sankey from the Patriots’ practice squad.

This story was originally published November 2, 2016 at 2:18 PM with the headline "Jamaal Charles has surgery for knee problem discovered after Oakland game."