Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Chiefs reliving familiar nightmare in Week 18 vs. Chargers

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Charles Goldman | Last updated 1/7/24

The Kansas City Chiefs are dealing with some worst-case scenario happenings in their Week 18 game against the Los Angeles Chargers.

With the No. 3 seed locked up and little left to play for on Sunday, the Chiefs opted to rest many of their starting players. Unfortunately, they simply don't have the numbers on the 53-man roster to rest all of their offensive linemen.

Rookie LT Wanya Morris was in the game for the majority of the snaps, but he left the game in the second quarter to be evaluated for a head injury. Morris was listed as questionable to return to the game, but he has since been ruled out with a concussion. That could be a massive problem if the NFL schedules the Chiefs for a Saturday playoff game. If you're playing on Sunday or Monday night, you've got a much better chance of the rookie clearing the concussion protocol and being able to play.

T Wanya Morris has been downgraded to OUT (Concussion). https://t.co/wajEENGDcV
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) January 7, 2024

That's not all, though.

Chiefs starting RT Jawaan Taylor came into the game, replacing Morris at the left tackle position. A few plays later, Taylor banged his knee and was down on the field with an injury.

Suddenly, the Chiefs lost both of their bookend tackles in a meaningless game in Week 18. In this game, they're down to their starting LG Joe Thuney at left tackle and backup Lucas Niang at right tackle.

It's all a bit reminiscent of the offensive line injuries that the Chiefs suffered ahead of Super Bowl LV, which led to a disastrous performance in the big game. They had to start Mike Remmers at left tackle, Andrew Wylie at right tackle and Stefen Wisniewski at left guard due to injuries.

Taylor eventually returned to the game after halftime, but he could be playing through an injury he didn't previously have. Hopefully, Morris and Taylor are OK long-term and can play in next week's game. The Chiefs already have their typical starting left tackle, Donovan Smith, dealing with a neck injury. Any more injuries on the offensive line could spell disaster for the postseason.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: