Damien Williams expected to be inactive vs. Broncos

On a snow day where the Kansas City Chiefs could use their ground game, Damien Williams is expected to be inactive versus Broncos.

Damien Williams was already going to be a last-minute call for the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 15 heading into their showdown with the visiting Denver Broncos. NFL reporter Ian Rapoport has word on early Sunday morning that the running back is expected to be inactive for the game.

What makes this a really interesting development for the Chiefs is that snow is already falling in the region and could accumulate to impact the game plan for both teams. Ground games become important in inclement weather where slick conditions affect the ball too much when throwing downfield. Being without one of their most experienced and best all-around backs hurts the Chiefs in this regard.

Williams missed the entire Chiefs preseason with an injury and he was slow to develop as the season went on. Productivity was next to nothing for the first six games played for Williams, who also missed Weeks 3 and 4 during that stretch run. Even when he played (during that span), Williams averaged a pitiful 2.1 yards/carry, a sure signal that something was still wrong.

In Week 9, Williams enjoyed something of a breakout effort with 12 carries for 125 rushing yards, the sort of burst that turned heads late last season, to which the Chiefs responded with a two-year contract extension. He followed that up with 77 more rushing yards in Week 10. It looked as if the Chiefs were going to enjoy another late season surge from Williams at a helpful time. Then a rib injury struck.

Williams had only 4 carries for 7 yards before leaving with injury. From there, he still was not ready to return despite having a Week 12 bye week. Heading into Week 15, the Chiefs had to be hoping for Williams to get healthy for these important winter games, but Williams is clearly not himself.

Given Darrel Williams‘ presence on injured reserve, the Chiefs are rolling forward with LeSean McCoy, Spencer Ware, and Darwin Thompson as the featured trio.