Chiefs’ Edwards-Helaire questionable, but Reid optimistic about his Sunday availability
Rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire (illness) missed a second straight day of practice Friday and is officially designated as questionable for Sunday night’s game against the Denver Broncos.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid, however, sounded optimistic about Edwards-Helaire’s availability.
“We think we’re going to get him back here,” Reid said Friday. “I mean, I don’t think that’s a problem. He’s feeling better today, but we held him out.”
Reid said Edwards-Helaire is dealing with the same stomach issue that caused cornerback Bashaud Breeland to miss practice Wednesday and Thursday. Breeland returned Friday and was not assigned a game designation.
If the Chiefs don’t have Edwards-Helaire suited up, they’ve still got adequate depth at running back in Le’Veon Bell, Darrel Williams and Darwin Thompson. The Chiefs’ ground game would seem to have a favorable matchup against Denver’s 27th-ranked run defense, which allows an average of 131.3 yards per game.
The Chiefs listed reserve linebacker Dorian O’Daniel (ankle) as out after he missed three straight days of practice. O’Daniel, a core special teams player, suffered a high-ankle sprain in the first half of last week’s 27-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Linebacker Darius Harris hasn’t seen action since being elevated from the practice squad in late September but could be active Sunday to bolster special teams depth during O’Daniel’s absence.
Defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi (ankle), center Austin Reiter (knee), offensive lineman Mike Remmers (neck, rib), defensive end Tanoh Kpassagonon (hip) and offensive lineman Martinas Rankin (knee) practiced fully Friday and are not assigned game designations, signaling that they’re available for a full workload.
The Chiefs added linebacker Anthony Hitchens to Friday’s report with a shoulder injury, but he practiced fully and should be available Sunday night.
For the Broncos, running back Phillip Lindsay (knee), wide receiver Jerry Jeudy (ankle) and outside linebacker Malik Reed (shin) are designated as questionable.
Denver ruled out safety Trey Marshall (shin).
