Jody Fortson injury could create gameday concern for Chiefs

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Jody Fortson missed two practices earlier this week. How will his absence affect Sunday’s game?

The Kansas City Chiefs are relatively healthy entering their Week 9 matchup against the Tennessee Titans. Offensive tackle Lucas Niang’s return to the practice field is a welcome sign, and most of the roster are full participants in practice this week. The lone player out since Wednesday was tight end Jody Fortson.

Fortson has been listed out for multiple reasons. The Chiefs listed Fortson with a quad injury and illness on the Wednesday and Thursday injury reports. Kansas City had announced earlier that Fortson would miss Wednesday’s practice, but another day out does not inspire confidence. His injury raises more concerns than usual, especially with veteran Blake Bell still on injured reserve.

Travis Kelce and Noah Gray are the only healthy Chiefs tight ends right now, and playing with only two tight ends is not wise. Kansas City has Jordan Franks on the practice squad, and he makes the most sense as next man up. He has not made his regular-season debut for Kansas City, but played both offense and special teams during the preseason. His last regular-season appearance came for the Cleveland Browns in Week 3 of the 2021 season. Even then, he only logged nine special teams snaps for the Browns.

If promoted, Franks will have noticeable snaps to fill on Sunday. Fortson plays in almost 25% of Kansas City’s offensive snaps, while playing in 49% of their special teams snaps. Fortson may not be stuffing the stat sheet in 2022, but he still has a clearly defined role on gameday. The Chiefs tight end depth is even more important as Kelce’s snap counts decline to spell the veteran.

The options outside of elevating Franks are not only improbable, but imprudent. Head coach Andy Reid is too smart to only have two active tight ends on gameday, and it is too late to sign a veteran off the street. Hopefully the Chiefs have been overly cautious with Fortson this week, and he will still suit up Sunday. The options outside of that are uninspiring and bleak.