Thanks to a strong start to the 2024 NFL season, the Kansas City Chiefs became the first team to clinch a playoff berth. However, Andy Reid wants Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and other stars to continue bringing their A-game.
Despite being comfortably atop the AFC West with an 11-1 record and having the division title within touching distance, Reid knows the job isn’t done yet. Besides, Kansas City still has to secure the No. 1 seed in the conference.
Therefore, Reid has warned Mahomes, Kelce, and those who have high snaps counts that the Chiefs won’t be managing workloads yet. The coach left the door open on doing so in the final weeks, but not in this one.
“Possibly. But not this week,” Reid told reporters on Wednesday when asked if there’ll be load management in the Chiefs’ last five games of the 2024 NFL regular season.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs talks with head coach Andy Reid before the NFL game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium on November 22, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Chiefs defeated the Raiders 35-31.
Coming up next for the defending Super Bowl champions is a highly anticipated game against the Los Angeles Chargers on ‘Sunday Night Football.’ As Reid said, the Chiefs won’t be saving anything in Week 14.
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Injuries haunting Reid’s Chiefs in 2024 NFL season
With five weeks left before the postseason, it’s fair to wonder whether the Chiefs will rest players at some point. While clinching a bye to the Divisional Round is worth fighting for, avoiding possible injuries would make sense for a team that already has multiple players on Injured Reserve.
This week, Reid confirmed Mahomes is losing yet another key teammate due to serious injury with kicker Spencer Shrader heading to IR, joining starter Harrison Butker, among countless offensive players.
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Chiefs stars with most snaps played in 2024
Key starters in Kansas City have stayed on the field throughout the 2024 NFL season, with the likes of tackle Jawaan Taylor, guards Joe Thuney and Trey Smith and center Creed Humphrey playing all 834 offensive snaps, just like Mahomes. Kelce played less snaps, but his workload is still significant:
- Jawaan Taylor – T – 834
- Patrick Mahomes – QB – 834
- Joe Thuney – G – 834
- Trey Smith – G – 834
- Creed Humphrey – C – 834
- Travis Kelce – TE – 696
- Wanya Morris – T – 670
- Xavier Worthy – WR – 526
- Justin Watson – WR – 516
- Noah Gray – TE – 513
- Kareem Hunt – RB – 367
- JuJu Smith-Schuster – WR – 262
- Samaje Perine – RB – 221
- DeAndre Hopkins – WR – 219
In defense, cornerback Trent McDuffie leads with 751 defensive snaps but other important contributors are also carrying huge workload. These are the defensive players with the most snaps played in the 2024 NFL season:
- Trent McDuffie – CB – 751
- Justin Reid – SS – 731
- Bryan Cook – FS – 722
- Nick Bolton – LB – 710
- George Karlaftis III – DE – 625
- Chris Jones – DT – 623
- Drue Tranquill – LB – 596
- Tershawn Wharton – DT – 505
- Chamarri Conner – FS – 487
- Jaylen Watson – CB – 341
- Michael Danna – DE – 338
- Nazeeh Johnson – CB – 320
- Leo Chenal – LB – 319
