KANSAS CITY, Mo. — As the Chiefs head to Los Angeles for a Sunday Night Football matchup against the divisional rival Chargers, they may be down three key players.
Kansas City announced Thursday Mecole Hardman Jr., JuJu Smith-Schuster and Chris Lammons would all sit out of practice yet again.
Smith-Schuster and Lammons remain in concussion protocol while Hardman is still dealing with "illness to his abdomen," which held him out against Jacksonville.
Last Sunday was Hardman's first missed game since being drafted back in 2019. The wide receiver has not seen the field since Week 9 against the Titans when he put up 79 yards and one touchdown.
Smith-Schuster took a vicious hit by Jaguars cornerback Andre Cisco in the second quarter against Jacksonville. He lay motionless, stunned on the turf before he was eventually helped to the sideline.
After the hit, he entered concussion protocol and was ruled out for the remainder of the game.
The controversial Week 10 play left the Kansas City's sideline feeling "angry," evening calling the play "illegal" and "dirty" after penalty flags that had been thrown were picked up.
Smith-Schuster's future in LA is up in the air as he continues to be monitored "day-to-day," per coach Andy Reid.
Lammons, who also entered concussion protocol last Sunday, may not return Sunday either, causing concern for chiefs special teams coordinator Dave Toub.
"It's hard to replace him with one — we don't have one guy that can replace him in all the spots, so we will ask a couple guys to fill in," Toub said in a press conference Thursday. "Like one guy will take two of his spots and one guy will take another two, but yeah, that is a big loss for us.
"He is a potential Pro Bowl player, he's the one we put up there to get votes as that guy, so he is an important guy to us. If he doesn't play, we have to have somebody step in and take his role."
The good news for the Chiefs is that wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling returned to practice Thursday after missing Wednesday due to illness.
