How Chiefs right tackle Jawaan Taylor powered through last season on a bum knee
Keeping Chiefs right tackle Jawaan Taylor’s knee injury on the down low last season was made easier by the fact that he didn’t miss a start. Plus, he played 98% of the snaps in the regular season and all of them in the playoffs.
But Taylor was hurting most of the season.
“I took a hit in Week 5, then I played the whole season with a nagging knee injury,” Taylor said. “I was getting my knee drained every week, trying to prepare for games.”
Taylor had suffered a partial tear in his meniscus. He was listed on the injury report weekly and was questionable for the Christmas Day game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. But Taylor started and played every snap. His only break came when he and most of the other starters rested in the regular-season finale at the Denver Broncos after the Chiefs had clinched the top seed in the AFC playoffs.
An MRI after the season revealed the tear and more damage to his patella. Taylor underwent surgery in March. His recovery also included an injection at the Stem Cell Institute in Panama in May.
The Chiefs’ offensive line delivered mixed results last season. Interior linemen Creed Humphrey, Trey Smith and Joe Thuney were Pro Bowl selections. But left tackle became a merry-go-round with four different starters.
Then there was Taylor, gutting it out on the right side.
“I was doing what I could to be the best for my team every week, so just fighting through every game,” Taylor said. “I feel like my play overall, just trying to be my absolute best, it is what it is. I wanted to sacrifice and do what I could to help the team win.”
As Taylor was recovering from surgery, the Chiefs made moves at tackle, selecting Josh Simmons with their first-round draft pick and signing free agent Jaylon Moore from the San Francisco 49ers.
Simmons looks to have locked down left tackle. Moore has played three offensive line positions — left and right tackle and left guard. Taylor started training camp on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list but has returned and is getting most of the first-team reps.
He looks to be the starter and seeks the kind of season the Chiefs envisioned for him when they signed him in 2023 to a four-year, $80 million deal. One part of his game Taylor has mastered — perseverance.
“Keep the fight,” Taylor said. “Show up every day and take rehab seriously. One day at a time. It’s not going to get better overnight. It’s a long process, but it’s worth it.”
This story was originally published August 3, 2025 at 2:18 PM.