The Kansas City Chiefs aren’t expecting starting RT Mitchell Schwartz back from injured reserve this week.
Schwartz has been dealing with a back injury since Week 7. Initially, there was some optimism he’d be able to return, but with each passing week, it became less likely. He was placed on injured reserve ahead of Week 11 and things have been quiet in regards to his status ever since.
With elimination playoff games coming up, Chiefs HC Andy Reid confirmed that Schwartz won’t return to play in the divisional round.
“Backs are fickle, so he’s not going to be back this week,” Reid said on Wednesday. “And then we’re literally taking that day by day. I mean, these things are crazy. There’s nobody that wants to play more than this guy. You know how he’s wired—you don’t play all the games he played in a row and not enjoy the game. But he physically can’t do that right now and we’ll just see how it goes down the road. I don’t think anybody’s lost hope in that, just sometimes time is an important thing here.”
Reid says Schwartz needs more time but doesn’t exactly know how much time he needs. He hasn’t ruled out a return and said they’re taking things day by day, but it’s hard to imagine that Schwartz would be any closer come the AFC Championship Game if the Chiefs do advance.
Back injuries do tend to be tricky injuries for an offensive lineman and some can potentially be career-ending, but there still isn’t much information out there as to what type of injury he’s dealing with. The way the injury has been handled so far it’s hard not to draw comparisons to Eric Berry’s perpetual day-to-day status back in 2018.
