Trent McDuffie, Marquez Valdes-Scantling out of Chiefs concussion protocol

The Kansas City Chiefs were able to remove two key players from the team’s concussion protocol well ahead of their opening game of the season.

The Kansas City Chiefs ended the preseason with a number of injuries that brought up new questions with over two weeks to go until they visit the Arizona Cardinals to open the regular season. The good news is that it only required a weekend of rest to be able to see a couple of those concerns already disappear with word that cornerback Trent McDuffie and wideout Marquez Valdes-Scantling have been removed from the team’s concussion protocol.

Head coach Andy Reid spoke to media on Monday and provided the latest injury updates for the Chiefs as they returned to practice. Reid stated that both McDuffie and Valdes-Scantling were both expected to practice at the start of a new week.

Heading into the last preseason game, Valdes-Scantling had been held out of practice and he didn’t suit up to play against the visiting Green Bay Packers in the third and final preseason exhibition at Arrowhead Stadium. As for McDuffie, he was forced to leave early in the game to seek medical attention and entered the concussion protocol shortly thereafter.

In addition to those injuries, the Chiefs also welcomed back wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, defensive end Carlos Dunlap and cornerback Rashad Fenton to practice on Monday as well. Tight ends Matt Bushman and Blake Bell remained sidelined and defensive end Frank Clark was also missing from practice on Monday, per Nate Taylor of The Athletic.

McDuffie was the team’s first-round investment at No. 21 overall and the biggest import at cornerback since the team selected Marcus Peters back in the 2015 NFL Draft. Valdes-Scantling, formerly of the Green Bay Packers, was signed shortly after trading Tyreek Hill in free agency