Kansas City Chiefs: Willie Gay’s injuries are becoming a concern

Should the Kansas City Chiefs be concerned about Willie Gay’s injuries? Is it just bad luck or is he prone to injuries? 

Many are expecting Willie Gay, a young linebacker with the Kansas City Chiefs, to take a step forward in production in 2021. He flashed a ton of potential while playing in just 25% of the snaps a season ago.

So far, it appears as if Gay is making significant progress as he learns the playbook while developing a more natural feel for the game during training camp and the preseason. That sort of progress has led to greater optimism from fans.

Unfortunately for Gay, his breakout season will begin on IR where the Chiefs placed him following reports of a turf toe injury which he suffered in the last preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings.

Luckily, the early indication is Gay’s injury will only be a few weeks as IR now requires for players to be there for a minimum of 3 weeks.

Kansas City Chiefs: How much should we worry about Willie Gay’s injury history?

Now, we need to discuss something that many people may not be willing to admit this far into Gay’s career.

We need to consider whether or not he is injury prone. Despite having played  a very small portion of the snaps in his first season and his second season not having started yet, Gay has already gone through a list of injuries.

Let’s review the major ones he’s suffered so far:

• High ankle sprain in week 17 of 2020
• Torn meniscus during Super Bowl LV practice
• Concussion in training camp
• Turf toe in preseason

While the list isn’t overwhelming, when you consider that all these injuries have been sustained as Gay’s role has been increased, it sure makes it seem like Gay’s health will be something the Chiefs have to monitor a little more heavily going forward.

The Kansas City Chiefs will need Willie Gay to stay healthy. Otherwise, this group of linebackers group will face some serious depth issues. It’s already not great when you consider that Gay will now be out as the Kansas City Chiefs start the regular season.

Many considered the early slate of games to be the toughest stretch of Kansas City’s schedule.

Gay’s latest injury shouldn’t cause panic, though. That’s not the point. However, it appears necessary that we now acknowledge that Gay’s injury pattern early is a cause for concern. Though we shouldn’t worry just yet, this is definitely something to keep an eye on.