The Kansas City Chiefs revealed which players will not suit up for the preseason finale against the Chicago Bears, and fan favorite rookie tight end Jake Briningstool was among the injured inactives.
“Here are the Chiefs who will not play against the Bears in the final preseason game,” Arrowhead Pride beat reporter Pete Sweeney relayed on X. “TE Jake Briningstool (hamstring), LB Jack Cochrane (knee), OL Ethan Driskell (appendix), S Mike Edwards (hamstring), CB Nazeeh Johnson (shoulder), DT Omarr Norman-Lott (ankle) and WR Jalen Royals (knee).”
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid also hinted that Patrick Mahomes and the starters will play at least one series earlier this week on August 18.
This is really a tough break for players like Briningstool, most of all. The standout rookie of OTAs suffered a hamstring injury that derailed his chances of making the 53-man roster early on in training camp.
Then, after working extremely hard to get back on the practice field this week, Briningstool was likely ruled out due to the short week leading up to a Thursday night game.
Needless to say, Thursday night was probably Briningstool’s final opportunity to avoid being cut next week. It’s hard to envision Kansas City keeping an undrafted rookie on its 53-man roster after that player missed the majority of training camp and the entire preseason — no matter how good he looked before his injury.
Especially when you consider how well veteran tight end Robert Tonyan has performed while he’s been out.
Chiefs Will Most Likely Offer Jake Briningstool a Place on the Practice Squad If He Passes Through Waivers
On the bright side, the expectation is that the Chiefs will offer Briningstool a spot on their 2025 practice squad.
If they weren’t interested in keeping the rookie tight end, they would have injury-waived him weeks ago, but instead, KC held on to Briningstool all this time. That’s a clear tell that they would like to see more of the promising UDFA.
Unfortunately, there’s a chance that another NFL team claims Briningstool off waivers, although that is typically unlikely when an undrafted prospect missed the majority of training camp.
In all likelihood, Briningstool will go unclaimed. If that happens, and if the Chiefs offer him a practice squad role, it would be up to Briningstool on whether or not he wants to sign with Kansas City or a different practice squad (assuming he has other offers).
Multiple Chiefs Bubble Candidates Will Miss Preseason Finale vs. Bears
Briningstool isn’t the only Chiefs bubble candidate who is set to miss the preseason finale.
From the list Sweeney provided, Johnson, Cochrane, Edwards and Driskell could all end up being cut, theoretically.
Johnson and Edwards both have a decent chance to make the roster despite this setback, but Cochrane’s future is less clear with the Chiefs drafting linebacker and special teamer Jeffrey Bassa in 2025.
Johnson had been competing with fellow draftmate Joshua Williams for a backup cornerback role on the perimeter, while Edwards should serve as veteran safety depth behind youngsters Jaden Hicks, Bryan Cook, and Chamarri Conner.
The most likely cut of this group of injuries is Driskell. The former UDFA offensive tackle had an opportunity to win a backup role this summer, but it doesn’t feel like that will come to fruition.
Similar to Briningstool, Driskell might be a candidate for the practice squad if he passes through waivers.
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