Peter Woods Injury Update: Kansas City Chiefs down both 2026 first-round draft picks after rookie DT aggravates neck injury
The Kansas City Chiefs are now without both of their first-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft after Peter Woods aggravated a neck injury against the Denver Broncos in Week 8.
The Kansas City Chiefs entered Week 8’s game against the Denver Broncos without No. 6 overall pick Mansoor Delane due to a shoulder injury. Now, it looks like they’ll be without No. 29 overall pick Peter Woods for the rest of the game.
After a screen pass by the Denver Broncos in the first quarter, Woods was down on the field. He ultimately left the field walking gingerly and went to the medical tent with a couple of trainers for treatment. He was quickly ruled questionable to return with a neck injury with about 5 minutes left in the first quarter.
If you’ll recall, Woods popped up on the injury report briefly ahead of Week 6’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers with a neck injury. He was limited in practice, but then had a full practice the following day. Now, it appears he’s aggravated that injury again.
With about 30 seconds left in the first quarter, Woods was seen on the sidelines without his helmet, with a Chiefs trainer working on his neck. The team typically doesn’t rule players out until after the first half. If he doesn’t return in the second quarter, look for an official update from the team at the start of the third quarter.
The Chiefs don’t have a ton of depth on the interior defensive line to rely on
If Woods can’t return for Week 8 against the Denver Broncos, the Chiefs may need to get creative on the interior defensive line. Chris Jones, Khyiris Tonga, and Bryson Eason are the only defensive tackles active during Sunday’s game. Steve Spagnuolo has used players like Felix Anudike-Uzomah and Ashton Gillotte at times, but any other injuries would put Kansas City in dire straits on the defensive interior.
Tracy Wolfson says that Chiefs HC Andy Reid challenged DT Chris Jones after his performance through the first six games of the 2026 NFL season. It looks like they’ll rely on him to pressure the defensive interior in this game.
If Woods’ injury becomes long-term, Kansas City defensive tackle Marcus Harris is on the practice squad. They can elevate him for Week 9’s game against the New York Jets.
