KC Chiefs vs. NE Patriots Week 15 Injuries and Inactives: Who's In, Who's Out?

Kansas City and New England have decided which members of their active rosters will play in their Week 15 matchup on Sunday.
KC Chiefs vs. NE Patriots Week 15 Injuries and Inactives: Who's In, Who's Out?
KC Chiefs vs. NE Patriots Week 15 Injuries and Inactives: Who's In, Who's Out? /
In this story:

Coming into the season, many expected the Kansas City Chiefs' Week 15 game against the New England Patriots to have some potential playoff implications. That's indeed the case, albeit only for one side of the matchup.

With Bill Belichick's squad being 3-10 through 13 games, it's Andy Reid's Chiefs that have more to play for on Sunday. Coming into the weekend with an 8-5 record, Kansas City finds itself a couple of games back in the race for the AFC's top playoff seed. A victory here is necessary to maintain a real chance of eventually coming back and securing that spot, in addition to getting some help along the way.

As is the case with just about any NFL game in mid-December, neither team is at 100% strength in Week 15. Both clubs ruled out at least one player coming into the game, with the visitors' list consisting of multiple contributors. The war of attrition is undoubtedly setting in at this late stage in the regular season, so both sides will be fighting through fatigue and more on Sunday.

Ahead of their outing on the road, the Chiefs' list of inactive players has been released. Here's who won't suit up for Kansas City:

  • CB Joshua Williams
  • RB Isiah Pacheco
  • DE BJ Thompson
  • OT Donovan Smith
  • DT Neil Farrell
  • DT Matt Dickerson
  • DE Malik Herring

To start the week, the Chiefs had four players — running back Isiah Pacheco, left tackle Donovan Smith, linebacker Leo Chenal and safety Mike Edwards — miss practice. The latter two ended up returning to work by the end of the week, although Pacheco and Smith failed to progress in time to play. They're out for at least this week with respective shoulder and neck injuries. Pacheco had surgery earlier this week, but it was a cleanup procedure that isn't expected to hold him out for too much longer. 

On Sunday morning, Kansas City announced that cornerback Joshua Williams was added to the injury report with an illness. While the second-year man tried to get ready in time to play, the team is holding him out of Week 15's game. Elsewhere, veteran nose tackle Mike Pennel is active over Matt Dickerson for the first time this season. Pennel was promoted from the practice squad on Saturday via Standard Elevation and will provide an interior presence against the run.

The Patriots' inactives have also been released:

  • WR JuJu Smith-Schuster
  • CB Shaun Wade
  • RB Rhamondre Stevenson
  • OT Trenton Brown
  • WR Kayshon Boutte
  • DE Sam Roberts

New England ruled out running back Rhamondre Stevenson this week, as he missed practice all week with an ankle injury. Eight others were questionable, including seven players who were either non-participants or limited participants in practice on Friday. Former Chiefs wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster was one of them, and he'll be unable to play through an ankle ailment that limited him in practice all week.

Chiefs vs. Patriots: NFL Week 15 Preview and Predictions


Published
Jordan Foote
JORDAN FOOTE

Jordan Foote is the deputy editor of Kansas City Chiefs On SI. Foote is a Baker University alumnus, earning his degree in Mass Media.