7 Chiefs on initial 53-man roster who could wind up on injured reserve

The Kansas City Chiefs' 53-man roster could still undergo several changes before Week 1, with many of them related to injuries. Teams often keep injured players on the initial 53-man roster in order to place them on injured reserve. In doing so, they'll have the ability to designate those players to return to the 53-man […]

Charles Goldman — NFL Managing Editor

Aug 30, 2023 11:10 AM EDT

The Kansas City Chiefs' 53-man roster could still undergo several changes before Week 1, with many of them related to injuries.

Teams often keep injured players on the initial 53-man roster in order to place them on injured reserve. In doing so, they'll have the ability to designate those players to return to the 53-man roster later this year.

Players like CB Nazeeh Johnson and TE Jody Fortson, who were placed on IR during training camp, are unable to be designated to return. However, anyone placed on the list from here on out will be allowed to come back and play this season.

Below you'll find seven players who could wind up on injured reserve for Kansas City. It's unlikely that all of these players will end up on the reserve list because some of them are further along in their injury recovery than others. However, it wouldn't be shocking to see a few of them land on the list as early as Wednesday.

DT Matt Dickerson

Dickerson might be the most likely player to land on injured reserve for a brief stay. He's dealing with a turf toe injury, likely suffered in preseason Week 2. Those injuries can require surgical intervention, but they can also go away with rest and rehab. Either way, the Chiefs could put him on the list and bring him back after four weeks or longer if necessary.

OL Nick Allegretti

Allegretti suffered a shoulder injury during training camp. It has kept him out of practice in each of the past two preseason games. Even though Andy Reid characterized this injury as minor, the Chiefs kept Mike Caliendo on the 53-man roster. He plays a very similar jack-of-all-trades interior lineman role. That could suggest the team expects Allegretti to be out for a bit, which would make a short-term IR stay a smart move.

LB Leo Chenal

This injury has Chiefs fans concerned after the team kept six linebackers on the 53-man roster. Andy Reid told reporters after preseason Week 3 that Chenal had a hip pointer injury. He was ruled questionable and then ruled out of the game with the injury. Blake Bell had a hip pointer last year that cost him practically the entire 2022 NFL season. Not all injuries are the same, but this one is worth monitoring.

CB L'Jarius Sneed

Sneed is probably the most mysterious situation for Kansas City. He's dealing with some sort of knee injury, which he also seemingly dealt with and missed time with a season ago. While Andy Reid told reporters they'd get him back sooner than later, he's yet to practice for the Chiefs and didn't participate in a single preseason game. It's still quite unclear if he'll be ready to start the 2023 NFL season.

CB Nic Jones

Jones suffered some fractured fingers in preseason Week 1. He had to see a specialist for the injury to be evaluated. According to Andy Reid, Jones doesn't need surgery on his hand. However, it's reasonable to think he might need some time to heal even without surgery. Maybe they put him on the injury reserve list in the interim? It's also possible that he could just play with a protective club on his hand.

WR Kadarius Toney

Fans should be feeling a lot more confident about Toney's availability for Week 1. Chiefs HC Andy Reid told reporters that he could return to practice this week and there is a report floating around from NFL Network's James Palmer echoing that fact. It sounds like he's going to at least try and practice which is a positive sign that he won't go on IR. But it's worth noting his injury history and the fact that he did have surgery on his knee. If he doesn't look good at practice this week, they might opt to place him on IR and bring him back when he's ready.

DT Tershawn Wharton

Wharton is off of the PUP list to start the 2023 NFL season following his season-ending ACL injury last year. He saw his knee swell up during training camp and missed some time, but he played five snaps in the preseason finale. It looks like he's trending in the right direction, but if he backslides, the team could opt for a short-term stay on IR.