Josh Simmons injury update: Patrick Mahomes gets massive bad news on Chiefs LT's status for Week 14 vs Texans

Patrick Mahomes-led Kansas City Chiefs’ offense received a depressing update on Josh Simmons’ status ahead of the team’s Week 14 matchup with the Houston Texans. The left tackle sustained a wrist injury in a collision with Kareem Hunt during the Chiefs’ Week 13 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

The rookie underwent surgery after the game, which head coach Andy Reid described as successful. However, he also confirmed the Ohio State alum has now been moved to injury reserve pending his full recovery. He gave the update during his Wednesday media conference, where he said:

“Josh Simmons ended up having surgery on that wrist for a fracture and dislocation. He’ll go onto IR, and then we’ll just see about the recovery on that, how it goes from there.”

The coach will not peg Simmons’ return to any particular date, but he assured the media that he’s doing everything to speed up his rehabilitation. He continued:

“Listen, the kid loves to play football. That part—he’s depressed about that part. That’s probably the wrong—he’s down about that part. But he’s upbeat that the surgery went well, which is a real positive, so he feels good about that. It’s just a matter of coming back. He did a great job with the knee coming back. He’s a worker. Whatever he can do to rehab it, he’s going to do. That’s just how he rolls.”

Will Josh Simmons return in time for the playoffs?

The Chiefs are fighting hard to keep their playoff dreams alive, entering Week 14 6-6 and sitting at No. 3 in the AFC West. One of the raging questions is whether Reid can guarantee Simmons’ return in time for the playoffs if the Chiefs secure a berth. He said:

“We’ll see how that goes. Got to wait just a little bit on that and see how that goes with his recovery. There’s always that chance.”

The loss against the Cowboys was Josh Simmons’ third game after an earlier absence of multiple weeks for a personal matter. Offensive tackle Esa Pole is set to replace Simmons on the active roster while he goes through his rehabilitation.

Pole was undrafted in this year’s NFL draft, signing with the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent in May. He was later waived in August, when he was claimed by the New York Jets. He got waived again in October and returned to the Chiefs’ practice squad.