Kansas City Chiefs Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Chiefs RB Isiah Pacheco struggled to get anything going on the ground vs. the Lions on Thursday night, averaging just 2.9 yards on eight carries. He lost six carries to RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who started the game. On the plus side, Pacheco led Chiefs RBs with a 42% route rate. He caught all four of his targets for 31 yards, including a screen that went for 10 yards. Pacheco only reached four catches once all last season -- and that came in the AFC Championship. We'll see how the carry distribution evolves in Kansas City going forward. But more action in the passing game would be excellent news for Pacheco's fantasy value.

NBC's Melissa Stark reported during Thursday night's season opener that the Chiefs are "optimistic" TE Travis Kelce (knee) will be ready for Week 2. Kelce worked out in the pool on Thursday morning but couldn't produce any power off that injured knee, per Stark. We'll track Kelce's progress when Kansas City gets back to work next week.

Chiefs TE Travis Kelce (knee) is officially inactive for tonight's opener vs. the Lions. That leaves Noah Gray as Kansas City's top TE. Chiefs WRs -- particularly Skyy Moore, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and Kadarius Toney -- have more target potential with Kelce out.

Chiefs TE Travis Kelce (knee) will not play vs. the Lions tonight, according to insider Jordan Schultz. "I’m told the Chiefs’ All-Pro TE made a strong push to play after this morning’s workout, but the team did not want to risk anything with a full season of games ahead," Schultz adds. It sounds like Kelce has a good chance to make it back for Week 2, but we'll track his progress throughout next week. Noah Gray will step in as Kansas City's lead TE tonight and is an option for desperate Kelce owners.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that Chiefs TE Travis Kelce (knee) is a "true game-day decision" for tonight's opener vs. the Lions. "The Chiefs plan to put star TE Travis Kelce through a workout this morning to test his injured knee," Pelissero adds. This is excellent news long term. If Kelce even has a chance to play tonight, we imagine he's a strong bet to at least be back for Week 2. As for Week 1, we'll get Kansas City's inactives around 7 pm ET. Kelce will carry elevated risk if he ends up playing but would be nearly impossible to bench in fantasy football lineups.

Cardinals WR Marquise Brown was limited in Wednesday's practice with a hamstring injury. It's the first we've heard of it. We'll see how Brown progresses over the next couple of days, leading up to Sunday's opener vs. the Commanders.

Chiefs WR Kadarius Toney (knee) is not listed on the final injury report for Thursday night's opener vs. the Lions. He graduated to a full practice on Wednesday after being limited the previous two days. We'd still be surprised if Toney played a full slate of snaps tomorrow, so he's not a recommended Week 1 starter. We'll keep a close eye on his usage.

The Chiefs list TE Travis Kelce (knee) as questionable for Thursday night's opener vs. the Lions. He didn't practice on Wednesday after hyperextending his knee and sustaining a bone bruise on Tuesday. We'd be very surprised if Kelce played tomorrow, but Kansas City doesn't want to rule him out yet. We'll get the inactives around 7 pm on Thursday. Kelce should be on fantasy benches for now.

Chiefs TE Travis Kelce has been diagnosed with a bone bruise, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Kelce is dealing with "significant swelling," per Rapoport, but there's no structural damage and it's not a long-term injury. Relatively good news -- but Kelce owners need to be making other plans for Week 1. We'll get Kansas City's final injury report for the opener vs. the Lions on Wednesday afternoon.

Chiefs TE Travis Kelce's knee injury is "not believed to be a long-term" issue, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Kelce's availability for Thursday night's opener vs. the Lions is "in doubt," per Rapoport, but at least we're not looking at an extended absence from the fantasy first-rounder. "They’ll wait for swelling to go down and go from there," Rapoport adds. We knocked one game off of Kelce's season-long projections and have removed him from the Week 1 rankings for now. Stay tuned for further updates.

UPDATE: ESPN's Adam Schefter tweeted on Tuesday evening that the Chiefs "believe Travis Kelce’s ACL is intact" but that there is inflammation in his knee. The team will test Kelce again tomorrow to determine his fitness for the opener.

Chiefs TE Travis Kelce hyperextended a knee in practice Tuesday, HC Andy Reid told reporters. The injury leaves Kelce's status "uncertain" for Thursday night against the Lions, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. It'll help that it's the first game of the week, so fantasy managers will still have all other lineup options available before locking in that TE starter. We'll keep tracking the situation. Backup TE Noah Gray makes sense as a waiver-wire option this week for deeper leagues.

Chiefs WR Kadarius Toney (knee) was a limited participant in Monday's practice. He's seemingly trending toward playing in Thursday night's opener vs. the Lions, but we'd be surprised if he played a full slate of snaps after missing all of training camp and the preseason. See where Toney sits in the Week 1 WR rankings.

Chiefs HC Andy Reid said Sunday that WR Kadarius Toney (knee) is "good to go," presumably for Thursday night's opener vs. the Lions. "He's moving around pretty well. We'll take it day by day," Reid added. QB Patrick Mahomes said that Toney has been practicing for a few days and "looks like KT." We'd try not to use Toney in Week 1 fantasy lineups considering he missed all of training camp and the preseason. But we'll be keeping a close eye on his playing time and role in the offense.

Chiefs DT Chris Jones remains away from the team as K.C. prepares for Thursday night's opener against the Lions. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that the player and team are still "not close on a deal" for boosting Jones' contract. The situation adds obvious risk to Jones in IDP leagues. We haven't moved the veteran down our IDP rankings, though, because plenty of upside remains whenever he does return. You'll need to decide how to balance the risk with the upside on Jones at draft time. Not having Jones, of course, would hurt the Chiefs' team defense. You shouldn't be looking to use them against Detroit in Week 1 anyway, though.

Per multiple reports, UDFA RB Deneric Prince was waived by the Chiefs on Tuesday. The former Tulsa back was a surprise standout throughout the early parts of OTAs and training camp. Unfortunately, his performances were not enough to secure a spot on the final 53-man roster. The Chiefs also cut RB La'Mical Perine from the team. The defending Super Bowl champions will carry Isiah Pacheco, Jerick McKinnon, and Clyde Edwards-Helaire into the regular season. Pacheco stands as our highest-ranked back on the Chiefs, but don't be surprised to see McKinnon return flex value in PPR formats in 2023. See where each of these players appear in our current RB rankings.

The Chiefs are expecting "big things" from WR Justyn Ross, according to NFL Network's James Palmer. "Ross has had a very good camp," Palmer adds. We've seen plenty of highlights from Ross' camp performance, but he didn't get many first-team reps this preseason. He's not a viable fantasy option out of the gate but is an intriguing stash in deep fantasy leagues.

NFL Network's James Palmer hears that there's "optimism" that WR Kadarius Toney (knee) will be ready for next Thursday night's season opener vs. the Lions. He's been out since undergoing knee surgery in late July but is expected back at practice by the end of this week. "This week is gonna be very important," Palmer added. "They think he's doing great in terms of his recovery, but how he practices this week would be big." We'll keep an eye on Toney's progress, but he shouldn't be in your Week 1 fantasy plans coming off the extended absence.

Chiefs HC Andy Reid expects WR Kadarius Toney (knee) back at practice in "about a week." Toney has been sidelined since getting hurt on July 23 and subsequently undergoing surgery to repair a cartilage issue in his knee. Kansas City's season opener is just 12 days away, so Toney seems iffy for that one. But it at least sounds like he's trending in a positive direction and remains worth stashing on fantasy benches.

Chiefs RB Isaiah Pacheco (shoulder, hand) shed his non-contact jersey for Monday's practice. HC Andy Reid said afterward that there's a chance Pacheco plays in Saturday's preseason finale. He's clearly on track to be ready for Week 1.

Chiefs WR Justyn Ross returned to practice Wednesday after leaving with a leg injury the day before. The second-year wideout is clearly good to go.