The Kansas City Chiefs have experienced a downright brutal run of injury luck. Whether it be their offensive line, receiving corps, defense or otherwise, last year’s conference champions wore down over the course of the season.
In Week 15’s loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, quarterback Patrick Mahomes put an unfortunate exclamation point on that. He’s done for the year with a torn ACL and LCL, and the blows didn’t stop there for Kansas City.
Apparently backup Gardner Minshew is also feared to have suffered a major injury.
Chiefs Backup QB Gardner Minshew ‘Likely’ Tore ACL in Week 16: Report
Per a Sunday afternoon report from Matt Derrick of Chiefs Digest, it may be another ACL. That’s what the team believes Minshew’s Week 16 injury was. According to Derrick, he’ll undergo an MRI, just like Mahomes did a week prior.
“Chiefs QB Gardner Minshew likely suffered a torn ACL in his left knee against the Titans today, sources tell Chiefs Digest,” Derrick’s tweet began. “He will undergo an MRI to confirm. Patrick Mahomes and Gardner Minshew suffering torn left ACLs in back-to-back games is crazy bad luck.”
Minshew suffered the knee injury in the first half of Sunday’s 26-9 loss to the Tennessee Titans. Both Adam Schefter of ESPN and Ian Rapoport of NFL Media either quote-tweeted or credited Derrick while alluding to the same early Chiefs belief.
At the time of his ailment, he’d completed 3 of 8 passes for 15 yards. His 1.9-yard average and 45.8 passer rating indicated serious struggles, which the eye test backed up. On multiple occasions, the veteran signal-caller looked erratic in the pocket.
Earlier this week, Minshew spoke about the upcoming opportunity to lead Kansas City down the stretch.
“It’s an opportunity to step in and do my job,” Minshew said. “Being how there’s a lot of guys that have put a ton of work into this, I owe it to them. I owe it to this coaching staff, this team [and] this fan base to go out and do my best to give us the best chance to win.”
Unfortunately, it appears he won’t be afforded that chance for any longer.
Kansas City Faces Big Minshew Decision This Coming Offseason
In his first season with the Chiefs, Minshew didn’t do much from a box score perspective. The 29-year-old went 6-for-13 passing with 37 yards, no touchdowns and an interception. It’s hard to take anything away from such a small sample size. Even his end-of-game turnover versus Los Angeles in Week 15 can be taken with a relative grain of salt.
Kansas City didn’t get much of a look at Minshew. Signed to a one-year contract, his $1.17 million base salary didn’t reflect any serious belief, but the offensive coaching staff raved about him during the offseason. The team has been on a quest to find a formidable backup for Mahomes, and many thought Minshew could be that option beyond 2025.
That begs the question: Does Minshew have a future with the Chiefs? Should the club move to re-sign him during the offseason? Cases can be made both for and against it.
On one hand, the former sixth-round pick has 62 games and 46 starts under his belt. He’d thrown 68 touchdowns to 35 picks entering Week 16. His time with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Philadelphia Eagles, Indianapolis Colts and Las Vegas Raiders reflect him being well-versed. If he’s cheap again, perhaps he’d be a worthwhile investment.
On the other hand, Minshew’s recent track record is nothing special. Last year in Las Vegas, he posted an 81.0 passer rating with more interceptions (10) than touchdown passes (9). Additionally, the presumed knee injury would come with a lengthy rehab process. Is it sensible to have multiple quarterbacks working their ways back from significant roadblocks?
That’s an answer the Chiefs may have to find out along the way, just like with Minshew’s injury.
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