The Kansas City Chiefs are dealing with some injuries at the linebacker position heading into their Week 14 game against the Buffalo Bills. 

Nick Bolton remains on injured reserve due to a wrist injury, though the team opened his practice window just last week. His backup, Drue Tranquill, suffered a concussion after taking a knee to the head against the Green Bay Packers in Week 13. The Chiefs found themselves to their third option at MIKE linebacker on Sunday night, with 2022 undrafted free agent Jack Cochrane, filling in for Tranquill. 

Right now, there is no guarantee that Tranquill will clear the NFL concussion protocol or that Bolton will be able to return from injured reserve in time for the team's upcoming game. 

Chiefs HC Andy Reid gave an update on the situation during his Monday media availability.

Will Nick Bolton return in Week 14?

Bolton has been designated to return from injured reserve, but after spending a week practicing in a limited capacity, he was not activated for the Week 13 game against the Green Bay Packers. Will he make enough progress to return to action against the Bills this upcoming week? Things very much remain up in the air.

“He practiced last week, and I know he’s chomping at the bit to get back in there and play, so we’ll see how it goes for this week," Reid explained. "He will be a week better though; I know that. We’ll just see how it works out these next couple of days.”

Bolton was spotted in a hard cast at practice last week. If he's not able to shed that cast for lighter protective gear, it's hard to see him returning to the lineup. Keep an eye on the cast situation when the Chiefs return to practice on Wednesday.

Jack Cochrane filled in nicely for Drue Tranquill:

The Chiefs were somewhat prepared when Tranquill was knocked out of the game. That's because Cochrane gets a handful of reps at the MIKE linebacker position during the practice week. He's been getting second-team snaps in each week that Tranquill has started in place of Nick Bolton. 

Chiefs HC Andy Reid had high praise for Cochrane's ability to pinch-hit for Tranquill in Week 13. 

“Jack (Cochrane) rotates in during the week and will spot Drue (Tranquill) that’s a part of what we do," Reid said. "Very, very smart – he’s very smart. I thought he did a decent job in there; he made a couple of nice plays for us. I know everybody has confidence in Jack. It’s too bad about Drue, he’s been doing a phenomenal job for us and just took a knee to the head, you probably saw that. Fast recovery for him we hope. It was a good experience for Jack to get in there and get some extensive play time, but Jack – he’s not just a throw-in there, he does a pretty good job.”

It's good to know that the team has confidence in Cochrane to get the job done. Conversely, the depth at the position is being tested in a big way. When it's all said and done, the Chiefs could be forced to start their third-stringer at the most important defensive position for Steve Spagnuolo's unit. It'd be a suboptimal situation to be in after a two-game losing skid with an important AFC game against the Bills on deck.

Needless to say, the team will be hoping for the best with both Bolton and Tranquill as the practice week begins on Wednesday. 

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