Cornerback injury muddies waters in Chiefs secondary before roster cuts

The Chiefs are going to have a difficult time making decisions on who to keep or not when it comes to defensive back.

As the Kansas City Chiefs got back to practice on Tuesday before their third and final preseason game against the visiting Chicago Bears, the team announced that they were down a man in the secondary with an injury to defensive back Joshua Williams.

The Chiefs were without Williams, who is competing for the No. 2 cornerback role opposite Trent McDuffie, because of a hamstring injury.

Williams has been locked into an even competition for the chance to start on the boundary this season opposite McDuffie in a role vacated by L'Jarius Sneed, following the trade with the Tennessee Titans. As a third-year corner, Williams was locking horns with Jaylen Watson and Nazeeh Johnson for the CB2 spot.

The Chiefs have already had a tough time getting enough reps and chemistry to see how the secondary could shake out. Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo spoke to reporters on Tuesday as well and admitted that the team hasn't had a single moment with their starting 11 on the field at the same time due to injuries.

Injuries have also played a major part in the readiness of corners this preseason. Nazeeh Johnson has missed considerable time over the years, including this summer and was even carted off of practice in late July. Jaylen Watson took several weeks to return after undergoing surgery for a labrum issue that he played through last year.

In the meantime, other corners have been doing everything they can to get the coaches' attention in Kansas City. Kelvin Joseph has been a solid pickup and is a former second-round pick. Keith Taylor shows a penchant for making big plays. Not to mention the fact that the Chiefs already liked the long-term potential of guys like Ekow Boye-Doe, Nic Jones, Miles Battle, and Kamal Hadden.

And in the midst of all of these names, Chamarri Conner has yet to be mentioned yet he'll be manning the slot for a significant amount of snaps as well.

Williams' injury will be something to watch in the next couple of weeks as the team prepares to host the Baltimore Ravens in primetime to open the 2024 NFL season. The severity could make the muddied waters of the secondary even more so—making complete clarity impossible to find.