Sammy Watkins, Mitchell Schwartz remain sidelined to start another week

The Kansas City Chiefs start another week of practice without Mitchell Schwartz and Sammy Watkins.

Another week of practice has begun and the Kansas City Chiefs are still without wide receiver Sammy Watkins and right tackle Mitchell Schwartz due to injury. Both players missed the team’s Week 7 win over the Denver Broncos, and their status is now in question as the team prepares for the New York Jets.

It’s that last fact that might inform the Chiefs approach in the coming week with any and all injuries. The Jets are, without question, the single worst team on the Chiefs schedule this year as head coach Adam Gase and company are still searching for their first win of the season heading into Week 8—that is, if you even believe they’re trying to win at all. The team has been steamrolled by even mediocre teams, so it’s not a surprise that the Chiefs opened as approximately 20-point favorites.

If the Chiefs are wanting to play it safe with some key players for the long-term, then this week is a good one to hold them out. However, it’s doubtful that Watkins or Schwartz are too keen to keep sitting on the sidelines.

Watkins is dealing with a hamstring injury that has kept him out for two straight games. However, the Chiefs avoided placing him on injured reserve, which would have forced him out for three contests, which means they were likely eyeing either Week 7 or 8 as his chance to return. His participation in practice in particular will be something to watch, since the Chiefs could be resting him before getting him slowly back up to speed for the weekend.

As for Schwartz, no further details are known about the back injury that kept him out completely against Denver and most of the game against Buffalo. Schwartz is known as an ironman at right tackle whose consecutive games streak was the longtime benchmark for the entire NFL. It’s telling that he’s missing, which means the issue might be severe. Then again, the Chiefs haven’t pulled the trigger on injured reserve.

Andy Reid also noted that safety Armani Watts also sat out practice on Wednesday due to an illness.