KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Chiefs coach Andy Reid on Monday confirmed that rookie left tackle Josh Simmons will return to practice this week.
“We’re expecting everybody back, Josh included,” Reid said. “I presume they’ve got some workouts in their off time, and they’ll come back ready to go.”
Simmons reported back to the team last week when the Chiefs were on their bye. Simmons hasn’t played since Week 5 as he’s been away from the team tending to a personal matter. Reid wouldn’t say if Simmons, the team’s first-round pick this year, would immediately return to the starting lineup over Jaylon Moore or even how much he’d practice as the Chiefs get ready for Sunday’s game at Denver.
“We’ll see where we’re at here,” Reid said. “We know we’ve got a good player in there now, and we know what Josh is capable. And we’ll just see where we’re at.”
The Chiefs signed the fifth-year veteran Moore as a free agent prior to this year’s draft, and at the time he was considered the starting left tackle. When the Chiefs drafted Simmons, Moore became the backup but has shown over the past few weeks that he’s more than capable of being a starter.
“He’s done a nice job for us,” Reid said. “I think asking him to jump in after the season has been going for a couple months here was a tough ask, especially with the D-lines we’re playing against. But he’s done a nice job.”
Entering the bye week, the Chiefs had been dealing with some injuries as right tackle Jawaan Taylor injured an ankle against the Bills and running back Isiah Pacheco missed the Bills game with a knee injury. Reid said Taylor was feeling much better after the Bills game, but Pacheco’s return might not be as quick.
