Arrowhead Report

Report: Chiefs Place Linebacker Willie Gay Jr. on Injured Reserve

The second-year linebacker had a promising preseason before injuring his toe in KC's final preseason game. Now, the start of his 2021 season will be delayed.

Joshua Brisco

The Kansas City Chiefs have placed second-year linebacker Willie Gay Jr. on the injured reserve list following a toe injury he suffered in the Chiefs' third preseason game.

The good news for Gay and the Chiefs is that he can return as early as Week 4, after missing three games, in accordance with the NFL's IR rules for the 2021 season. This change was made ahead of the 2020 season and will stick around through at least 2021.

On Tuesday, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid gave the first official mention of Gay's injury, noting that it came up during the Chiefs' preseason finale against the Minnesota Vikings.

"Let me throw an injury update here," Reid said to begin his press conference. "Willie Gay is really the only new one, he hurt his toe in the game. He didn’t go today [Tuesday] — we’ll just see how he does here the next couple days."

Later in his presser, Reid was asked about his level of concern regarding Gay's availability for the season opener.

"I think the next few days here, a week or so, will tell us," Reid said. "We’ll just see where we’re at with it. Those things are sensitive. Like I said, we’ll play it by ear and see how he does."

The next red flag popped up on the Chiefs' first 53-man roster of the season as the team kept six linebackers — a surprisingly high number for the Chiefs. Special teams regular Dorian O'Daniel was the Chiefs' fifth linebacker, with Darius Harris being the more surprising sixth — with Gay, Anthony Hitchens, Ben Niemann and Nick Bolton being the first four. Those moves make more sense now, with Gay set to miss at least the first three weeks of the regular season.

Read More: Willie Gay Jr. is Ready for His Second-Year Jump

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Joshua Brisco
JOSHUA BRISCO

Joshua Brisco is the editor and publisher of Kansas City Chiefs On SI and has covered the Chiefs professionally since 2017 across audio and written media.

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