The Kansas City Chiefs came into Week 16’s game against the Houston Texans with a mixed bag of an injury report, and things didn’t get much better early in the contest.
Near the halftime break, rookie wide receiver Xavier Worthy suffered an apparent non-contact lower body injury during his route against cornerback Jeff Okudah. Following that second-and-10 play in the second quarter, he limped off to the sideline and Kansas City used its second timeout of the half.
Per an announcement from the Chiefs on their official X (formerly Twitter) account, it’s an ankle ailment for Worthy. As of the halftime break, he’s been ruled questionable to return.
Prior to exiting Saturday’s game, Worthy had been frequently involved in the offense. Not only did he get targeted five times in the passing game, but he hauled in four of those tries for 26 yards. Additionally, he got two carries for three yards on the ground. This marked the continuation of a solid workload for the first-round pick, who has no less than four receptions in every game dating back to Week 11’s loss to the Buffalo Bills.
Earlier this month, head coach Andy Reid tipped his cap to Worthy and outlined a “main concern” with Worthy that was anything but a real reason to worry.
“He’s getting better,” Reid said. “I think that’s what we all can see. It’s not a secret, he’s putting that out there for everybody to see, and so my main concern is that he just keeps doing that. That’s what you want to do. Keep working to better yourself, and let’s just see where it all ends up at the end. But he’s doing a nice job, he’s got the trust of the quarterback, he’s got the trust of the coaches, he’s playing fast, it looks like he’s gotten his legs back from training camp and the early part of the season. All of that’s positive stuff, but you’ve got to keep putting the product out there.”
This story will be updated when additional information on Worthy’s injury is available.