Kansas City Chiefs place Nazeeh Johnson in concussion protocol vs Raiders

Update: Johnson has been ruled out for the rest of the game with a concussion.

The Kansas City Chiefs are on the road this week at Allegiant Stadium to play their first of two games this year against the Las Vegas Raiders. Coming into such a physical matchup is bound to lead to plenty of sore bodies after the game, but it also results in an injury or two every time these teams play.

As for this week, the Chiefs watched defensive back Nazeeh Johnson take a hit to the head early in Week 8 and have placed him in the team's concussion protocol.

The Chiefs lost starting cornerback Jaylen Watson, who was in the midst of a breakout season, last week to a season-ending injury in which he suffered a fibula and tibia. Johnson is a primary substitute for him, which means the Chiefs are going to have to dig a bit deeper at the position to stay afloat against the Raiders and make it through Week 8.

Johnson has been a nice story this season as a former seventh-round pick who has been finally healthy enough to show what he can do. He's earned the trust of the coaching staff in each preseason he's been in K.C. for more playing time, both as a defender and core special teams player, but staying healthy has been a concern.

Joshua Williams is the most likely player to step in for Johnson and Watson in the wake of their injuries and earn major playing time, but he's untested with larger loads as a mostly rotational player in his career so far. All three defensive backs came in together to the NFL in the same 2022 draft class.