The injury bug has bit the Kansas City Chiefs in the worst way in recent weeks, with promising young tight end Jody Fortson being the latest victim. Carted off the field after a non-contact injury in the third quarter, Fortson had a spectacular catch early in the game to set up a Darrell Williams touchdown on the Chiefs’ first drive.
With second-string tight end Blake Bell listed as inactive heading into this matchup, Fortson saw his heaviest workload of the season before going down. His injury was one in a series on both sides of the ball in this game. Linebacker Anthony Hitchens was knocked out of the tilt in the first half, and offensive superstar Tyreek Hill aggravated his quad before returning to catch a touchdown in the third quarter.
Fortson was quickly ruled out with an Achilles injury which is never a good sign.
TE Jody Fortson is out with an achilles injury
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) October 17, 2021
Rookie Noah Gray will fill the hole left by Fortson and should see his first significant snaps of the season to close out this matchup. Gray was drafted in the fifth round of the 2021 player selection meeting with the 162nd pick out of Duke. He made a big impact for the Blue Devils as a senior, displaying some run-after-catch ability reminiscent of Travis Kelce’s skillset.
Fortson was one of the most exciting young prospects Kansas City brought to training camp, making enough of an impression in August for general manager Brett Veach to justify carrying a fourth tight end on the 53 man roster. Now in his third year with the Chiefs, he has made good impressions in his relatively limited role as a third-string option behind Travis Kelce and Blake Bell, and as the offense continues to struggle, his presence will surely be missed.
Non-contact injuries like Fortson sustained are hard to try to diagnose over the broadcast, but more details about his condition and prognosis should come shortly after the game in Washington.
