Less than 12 hours before the Kansas City Chiefs were set to take the field in a pivotal game against the Detroit Lions in Week 6, the team made a scary addition to the injury report. K.C. added the name Josh Simmons with a designation of "questionable", with the asterisk that it was not injury related as the only clarity offered.
Since then, the situation surrounding Simmons has yet to be clarified, but what was made known on Sunday was that the Chiefs are in good hands even if they're missing their rookie left tackle going forward.
Jaylon Moore stepped in at the last minute to protect Patrick Mahomes' blindside, and the offensive line played perhaps its best game yet. The offense maintained the momentum gained in recent weeks, and Moore's name was never mentioned on the broadcast. That's a sign that he was doing the job expected of him along with everyone else up front.
The Chiefs were very pleased with the efforts of Moore in an emergency scenario.
Moore's performance in an emergency scenario drew high praise from the Chiefs this week. Head coach Andy Reid was asked for his thoughts. "He's always ready, and he practices a third of the practice because Andy [Heck, offensive line coach] rotates him in there.So I thought he did a nice job the other night, played well, and we have a lot of trust in him. Most of all, the guys around him have trust in him, so that's the most important thing."
The Chiefs signed Moore in free agency last March after he'd fulfilled his four-year rookie contract with the San Francisco 49ers. Moore signed a two-year deal worth up to $21 million with the hopes of starting, but the Chiefs also drafted Simmons in the first round less than two months later.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes also spoke glowingly of Moore's performance on Sunday and added that he sees Moore in a greater light than a backup role.
"I know the work that Jaylon's put in. He's a guy who's been a professional every single day. Every time he's been in there—if it's been left tackle, right tackle, guard, wherever it is—he's done his job and done it well," said Mahomes.
"So having those reps in training camp and throughout OTAs, I know that he's going to go out there and battle, and he's done a lot of great things that you just haven't seen on the field. So you see it now that he's a starting tackle in this league and can go out there and compete against anybody."
It remains to be seen whether the Chiefs will call upon Moore once again in Week 7 as the Las Vegas Raiders come for their annual visit. However, with the way he played when called upon versus the Lions, and given the level of trust his teammates have in him, the Chiefs offense should feel okay if they have to summon Moore again.