Breaking: Chiefs Get Massive Defensive Boost: Returning Star’s Progress Has Andy Reid Fired Up
The Kansas City Chiefs received some great news to start the new year with cornerback Jaylen Watson’s return to practice.
The Chiefs opened Watson’s 21-day practice window and have until Friday, Jan. 24 to activate him to the 53-man roster from injured reserve. Watson has been out of action since Week 8 with a broken fibula that he suffered during Week 7’s win over the San Francisco 49ers.
Watson will not play in Kansas City’s Week 18 regular season finale against the Denver Broncos, but could be available by the time it next takes the field, which will be in the divisional round of the playoffs. The Chiefs will enjoy a first-round bye week as the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
After practice on Friday, coach Andy Reid discussed how he thought Watson looked during his return to practice.
“He’s really done well coming back,” Reid said. “I’m curious to see how he felt. He was out there till the end, and he was moving around pretty good from what I saw.”
Reid went on to say that he figured that Watson would at least attempt to return from his injury before the season was all said and done.
“The way he was going about it, I get to see it every day, the progress that he’s making,” Reid said. “And he’d been doing so well that I figured that he’d be out there giving a whirl. I didn’t know what I would see out there, and I’m still not sure exactly, other than the times I looked at him, but he was moving around pretty good. So, I’ll be curious to see how he feels here after this practice and into tomorrow.”
Watson returning for Kansas City’s postseason run would give the defense a huge lift. His replacements, Nazeeh Johnson and Joshua Williams, have been inconsistent at best in his absence. Getting back a player of Watson’s caliber combined with how well the Chiefs’ pass rush has been over the last few weeks will make life extremely difficult for opposing offenses.
