After winning three Super Bowls in the last five years—including the last two in a row—Andy Reid and Brett Veach want to go a step further. Now, the Kansas City Chiefs aim to become the first team in NFL history to win three consecutive championships.
The team seems to be in the right direction, as Kansas City is riding on a perfect 9-0 start to the 2024 NFL season. Injuries, however, continue to threaten the Chiefs’ aspirations.
The most recent injury came in the offensive line, with left tackle Wanya Morris missing two quarters of the Chiefs‘ dramatic win over the Denver Broncos on Sunday after hurting his knee.
This situation, in addition to Kingsley Suamataia’s struggles when taking over, have many wondering whether the Chiefs will consider bringing back veteran tackle Donovan Smith, who helped them win Super Bowl LVIII in February. Speaking to reporters on Monday, Reid let everyone know that Veach will decide that, though the coach also made it clear to the GM that he’d like to have Smith back.
Donovan Smith #79 of the Kansas City Chiefs in action against the Buffalo Bills during their AFC Divisional Playoff game at Highmark Stadium on January 21, 2024 in Orchard Park, New York.
“That’s (Brett) Veach’s area. I mean, he looks at everything, so I’m not going to say ‘no,'” Reid said, via Sports Illustrated. “But what we do as coaches, and we over-emphasize, we’re going to focus in on these kids that are here, and they’re getting better. I know it’s hard to see at times, but there’s progress being made, and we’re going to be OK as we go forward.”
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Smith left the door open on a hypothetical return to Kansas City with a cryptic post on social media. The 31-year-old replied to a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) from former Chiefs’ OL Jeff Allen, who asked if he’s still available. Though his answer wasn’t entirely clear, it fueled rumors of a potential reunion with Reid and Patrick Mahomes.
While the 9-0 record suggests things are just fine at Arrowhead, the truth is that the Chiefs have work to do. Kansas City still has an important problem to solve at left tackle, with the team having issues to protect Patrick Mahomes’ blindside so far.
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Kingsley Suamataia entered the 2024 NFL season as starter, but a weak outing in Week 2 against the Cincinnati Bengals quickly cost him the job. On that day, Trey Hendrickson proved too much for the rookie, who allowed multiple pressures and committed a couple of penalties.
Morris, who has one more year of NFL experience, has looked a bit better as the Chiefs’ starting left tackle since Week 3. Still, the team continued to have some issues there, and his recurrent injuries have created concern.
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A bone bruise suffered in training camp has brought problems for Morris, who hurt his knee on multiple occasions since then. Last time out, it forced him to miss two quarters.
However, Reid has shown nothing but confidence in both players: “We were tested in a couple spots. It’ll help us grow, is what it’ll help us do, and particularly at that tackle position. We’re young at the left tackle spot, we’ll keep getting better as we go and experience some of these things. I think Wanya will end up being OK when it’s all said and done here, as far as his leg goes, and he was able to come back in and play, and Kingsley will learn from what we had there and keep getting better.”
