Chiefs wake up to bad news for Christmas ahead of pivotal matchup against Pittsburgh Steelers
A day of opening gifts and celebrating with family, Christmas festivities will have to wait for the Kansas City Chiefs this year. That's because they will be heading to take on a reeling Pittsburgh Steelers, who need to win on Wednesday if they want their division crown. But for Pittsburgh, that quest may have just […]
A day of opening gifts and celebrating with family, Christmas festivities will have to wait for the Kansas City Chiefs this year.
That's because they will be heading to take on a reeling Pittsburgh Steelers, who need to win on Wednesday if they want their division crown.
But for Pittsburgh, that quest may have just gotten a lot easier:
Chris Jones not expected to play at Steelers
Chiefs star DT Chris Jones is not expected to play today against the Steelers just a week after tweaking his calf, source said.
– Ian Rapoport, NFL Media, via X, Twitter
It's a massive loss to not only the Chiefs' pass rush and defense but their entire team. Jones may not have the stat-padded season he's known for, as he currently sits at five sacks with two games remaining. However, his impact, or lack thereof will be noticed in a game that Patrick Mahomes noted as a big deal due to what's on the line:
"I don’t think you talk about it, but everybody knows. I mean, it’s – you want to get that one seed to get that bye (week) so that you’re basically winning a playoff game by getting the one seed," said Mahomes. Y"ou get that and you’ll have home-field advantage as well at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium which we feel like is a huge advantage for us. "You can’t put all your attention to it, all you can do is go out there and play football and know that we’re going to play a great football team and it’s going to take our best football to win.”
The Chiefs will not be at their best on Christmas, and the news comes just as the Steelers return three starters to health, including star WR George Pickens.
The silver lining may be that Patrick Mahomes looked just fine against the Houston Texans last week, and he will be playing a Pittsburgh secondary down their best corner, Joey Porter Jr.
"I think I’ll be in a better place ankle-wise. I mean, obviously the body’s going to be sore with the short week and everything like that, but I think the ankle should be in a better place," Mahomes told reporters after the Texans game. "As far as how I felt after this game compared to the one before, I’m definitely in a lot better place.”
Chiefs’ secret weapon officially activated to 53-man roster just in time for Christmas Day tilt with Steelers
The Kansas City Chiefs will have No. 3 TE Peyton Hendershot back in the lineup starting in Week 17.
