Kansas City Chiefs HC Andy Reid confirmed on Sunday that CB Nazeeh Johnson did suffer a concussion during his first career start in Week 8's win over the Las Vegas Raiders.

The team managed to pull off a win in Week 8's game with Josh Williams filling in for Johnson. Ideally, the Chiefs would have both Williams and Johnson available for their upcoming game, especially with Jaylen Watson on injured reserve. Even though he's in the NFL's concussion protocol, Johnson will have a chance to play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 9 on "Monday Night Football." It's a longer week of preparation being a Monday night game, which gives him a greater chance of passing through the five steps of the NFL's return-to-participation protocols. 

Here are the five phases he'll need to pass to get back on the field on Monday. . .

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Phase I: Symptom Limited Activity

This phase prescribes Johnson with a combination of physical and cognitive rest and recovery. During the time off from Sunday to Wednesday, Johnson would limit any sort of strenuous activity that might exaggerate his concussion symptoms. During this period he's allowed to do light stretching and balance training under the supervision of the training and medical staff. It’s possible, if not likely that he already cleared this phase heading into Thursday's practice.

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Phase II: Aerobic exercise

The second phase includes what the NFL describes as a “graduated cardiovascular exercise program.”  Johnson will be permitted to continue balance training and dynamic stretching, but the team's medical staff can also add things like running on a treadmill or riding a stationary bike. The idea is to gradually increase the duration and the amount of work for Johnson to see if he develops any new or worsening symptoms. If he doesn’t, he’ll be permitted to advance to the next phase of the return-to-participation program. 

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Phase III: Football-specific exercise

In this phase, Johnson can now participate in training and exercises that simulate football-specific activities in 30-minute intervals or less. Specifically, the training and medical staff want to see if concussion symptoms stick around when your heart rate gets going as it would in an NFL game. Johnson can also resume weight training under supervision during this phase. If he shows no signs of recurring or worsening symptoms of a concussion following this training, he’s cleared for the next part of the program.

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Phase IV: Club-based non-contact training drills

Johnson will continue cardiovascular, strength, and balance training, all while incorporating team-based football-specific exercises and participation in non-contact football activities. In this phase, he can throw and catch, work on his backpedal, or work on breaking on the football. He'll go through neurocognitive and balance testing during this phase to determine whether or not he's returned to baseline function. That'll allow Johnson to graduate to the next phase. . . 

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Phase V: Full football activity/clearance

Upon clearance from the Chiefs' physician for full football activity, Johnson will need to be cleared by an Independent Neurological Consultation (INC). If the INC confirms that Johnson can return to full football activity, he'll be cleared to play in the team's Week 9 game. Even if he is still in the protocol as of Saturday and is listed as questionable on the final injury report, Johnson can receive clearance on Monday leading up to the game.

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