The Kansas City Chiefs are feeling very good about the state of their offense as they watch the early results of their Week 7 game against the Las Vegas Raiders. However, their opening drive, which resulted in a touchdown, came at a cost as fans at Arrowhead Stadium watched offensive lineman Trey Smith on the sideline with an injury.
Smith sought medical attention after the final play of the drive—a shovel pass to wide receiver Rashee Rice for the game's first touchdown—and was seen in pain on the sideline while being attended to by trainers.
Reserve guard Mike Caliendo was inserted into the lineup in Smith's place on the ensuing drive, also a touchdown drive capped by a short toss from Patrick Mahomes to Hollywood Brown.
The Chiefs designated Smith as questionable to return with a back injury.
The Chiefs are hoping Trey Smith's back injury isn't anything serious.
Smith was able to re-enter the game at first after heading toward the sidelines, but he sat out the second drive and his availability is now in question.
Back pain is not a good thing for any lineman since it can often become a lingering problem. The Chiefs experienced this first-hand when Mitchell Schwartz went from the NFL's best example of an ironman performer to retirement over the course of several weeks of back pain and subsequent surgery.
Of course, Schwartz is not the comparison here. There's no way to know what will happen with Smith going forward, other than to note that back issues are often concerns that linger for some time.
Smith's importance to the offense was illustrated by the Chiefs' commitment to the right guard this offseason with a lucrative new contract extension. Smith reset the guard market with a four-year deal worth up to $94 million, $70 million of which was guaranteed.
The Chiefs drafted Smith in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft and inserted him into the starting lineup from the first week of his rookie campaign. He became one of the NFL's toughest maulers over the course of his rookie deal and earned his first Pro Bowl nod in 2025.