Breaking: Chiefs Make Surprise Roster Move Ahead of AFC Championship Game- But There’s a Twist
The Kansas City Chiefs made their final roster moves on Saturday, ahead of Sunday’s AFC Championship Game against the Buffalo Bills.
As Chiefs Digest’s Matt Derrick first reported, the team elevated two practice squad members. One move should be expected after the AFC divisional round of the playoffs, but the other elevation might be misleading to fans.
The team elevated LB Swayze Bozeman and WR Justyn Ross to the 53-man roster for the AFC title game. After being elevated last week, Bozeman was active and played in the AFC divisional round against the Houston Texans, with 16 snaps on special teams. He didn’t play any snaps on defense, but he likely fulfilled a depth role there.
Fans shouldn’t expect the same for Ross this week, though. The team currently has six receivers (Hollywood Brown, Xavier Worthy, DeAndre Hopkins, Justin Watson, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Nikko Remigio) expected to be active for the game. They do not need to make a seventh player at the position active for the Bills game. So what exactly gives? Why did Kansas City elevate him if they won’t play him?
Why did the Chiefs elevate Justyn Ross?
The Chiefs are notorious for their loyalty to players at all levels, including those on the practice squad.
Just as the team did with veteran S Deon Bush last week, Kansas City is likely elevating Ross to give him a raise/bonus. Bush earned a 54.5K game check in the AFC divisional round, despite being inactive for the game. Ross has only accrued two NFL seasons, meaning he’s earning just $12.5K per week on the practice squad. Players on the 53-man roster for conference championship games in 2024/2025 get $77K in playoff pay, even if they’re inactive and on the sidelines for the game.
Kansas City is clearly doing a solid for a player who has stuck with the team as depth on the practice squad and scout team all season. It’s a classy gesture from the organization to show appreciation to a loyal and hard-working player when they didn’t have to. They could have kept him inactive and saved the money, but decided to reward him.
