Lucas Niang injury update: Chiefs tackle has torn patellar tendon

TThe Kansas City Chiefs knew they were going to have to do some rewiring along the offensive line going forward after losing two tackles to start their game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 17. When it comes to the loss of Lucas Niang, it’s going to be a season-ending loss that creates doubt around the position in the short-term and the long-term.

When Niang first went down early in the first quarter for the Chiefs, he required a cart to get off the field, a sign that the injury was indeed serious. After the game, head coach Andy Reid informed reporters that he tore his patellar tendon—an injury that requires an extensive amount of rehabilitation to return to the field. It’s also something that might keep Niang from coming back to full strength at all.

At this point, no one can know how Niang will respond or recover, but suffice it to say that a patellar tendon tear is hard to take for NFL players. Jack Conklin of the Cleveland Browns suffered the same injury last month and was declared out for the season. Derek Newton tore both patellar tendons back in 2016 and played in a single game after that in 2018 before ultimately retiring. This is, of course, a worse-case scenario.

The Chiefs have lost Lucas Niang for the rest of the season.

For now, it’s important to note that the Chiefs will be without Niang going forward for as long as they’re able to keep playing in the postseason. Because of this, it creates questions at right tackle and overall about depth at the position. Niang was the starter on the right side to begin the year and seems safe to assume he was going to pick that role back up when healthy.

Unfortunately without Niang, the Chiefs are also down their best swing tackle option if they were going to go with someone else outside. Coupled with the loss of Orlando Brown Jr. to a calf injury before the game, Niang’s diagnosis becomes a problem.

The Chiefs went with Joe Thuney at left tackle for the rest of their game against the Bengals on Sunday and relied once again on Andrew Wylie on the right side. That might just have to remain the situation until Brown is back and ready to play for K.C.