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Chiefs Get Big Jaylen Watson Injury News at 1st Divisional Game Practice

By Joe Summers

Sep 29, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Jaylen Watson (35) celebrates after breaking up a pass for Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Joshua Palmer (5) in the second half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Sep 29, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Jaylen Watson (35) celebrates after breaking up a pass for Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Joshua Palmer (5) in the second half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
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The Chiefs are seemingly expecting to have starting CB Jaylen Watson back against the Texans based on the team's surprising injury report following the end of Tuesday's practice.

Kansas City is getting set to take on Houston in the Divisional Round and Watson hasn't played since Week 7. If he can suit up, the Chiefs' secondary receives a massive boost and should be considered among the best in the NFL.

This move was somewhat expected after Andy Reid's early comments, though it's still stunning to see that Watson was a full participant.

Chiefs CB Jaylen Watson a Full Participant in Tuesday's Practice

As the Chiefs tried to replace departed starter L'Jarius Sneed, Watson became the obvious answer. He played no fewer than 93% of the snaps in the first five weeks, ranking 41st out of 223 qualified corners at Pro Football Focus.

Joshua Williams, Nazeeh Johnson, and Chamarri Conner all rotated opportunities to take Watson's place but none fared well enough to assuage Chiefs fans' concerns. Watson was a bonafide starter and his return will give this secondary a huge boost.

It's always possible that Watson faces a setback during practice this week, yet his full participation indicates that the coaching staff expects him to be ready to roll to take on the Texans' high-powered offense.

Watson will have enough time in practice for the coaching staff to determine if he can handle a full snap count. If he can't, then Williams is expected to start alongside McDuffie and go from there.

Despite only appearing in six games, Watson still accumulated 32 tackles while allowing a 75.4 passer rating and 53.3% completion percentage. He was an excellent player who deserves to be recognized. Should he not have suffered the injury, we'd be talking about the former fourth-round pick as one of the NFL's most improved players.

Luckily, it sounds like he'll be suiting up against Nico Collins and the Texans on Saturday.

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