Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill has cleared the COVID-19 protocols Saturday and will be available Sunday against the Steelers, a source told The Star.
Tight end Travis Kelce, linebacker Nick Bolton and rookie tackle Lucas Niang, on the other hand, have not yet cleared. The Chiefs elected to activate them from the reserve/COVID-19 list Saturday in hopes they pass the NFL’s testing protocols on Sunday.
Kelce was placed on the list Monday, and Hill, Bolton and Niang joined him Tuesday. The Chiefs have had 14 players from their active roster on the COVID-19 list in the past two weeks. Josh Gordon, Chris Jones, Willie Gay, Charvarius Ward and Blake Bell have since returned to practice.
And now they’re in line to get a big weapon back for their offense — although he’s not participated in practices this week, Hill has been part of team meetings through virtual connections, and coach Andy Reid said he’d consider playing key players if they were able to clear the protocols in time.
“There are some I would play if they were healthy and ready to go,” Reid said Friday.
Hill is second in the NFL with 102 catches and fourth in the league with 1,178 yards. He has nine receiving touchdowns. NFL Network first reported Saturday he had cleared the COVID-19 protocols.
With Kelce, Bolton and Niang, the Chiefs needed to decide whether to activate them by a 3 p.m. Saturday deadline, even if they weren’t yet available to play.
Under the NFL’s updated protocols, which were implemented after a league-wise wave of COVID-19 positives last week, a fully vaccinated player can be cleared from the COVID-19 protocols with two concurrent negative tests. A player previously needed two negative tests taken 24 hours apart.
If Kelce, Bolton and Niang are cleared Sunday, they’re eligible to play against the Steelers. If a player cannot pass the protocol, the Chiefs would declare him player inactive. The Chiefs released an updated injury report on Saturday designating Kelce, Botlon and Niang as questionable.
Hill was not listed on the injury report, an indication the Chiefs’ leading receiver will be available for a full workload.
Kelce is the NFL’s top tight end in yards gained, with 1,066. He also has seven touchdowns. He’s coming off a career-best game in the Chiefs’ overtime win at the Chargers, in which he caught the walk-off touchdown pass from Patrick Mahomes and was the AFC Offensive Player of the Week.
The team’s linebacker corps would be thin without Bolton, who has a team-high 102 tackles. Offensive lineman Andrew Wylie is the likely starter at right tackle if Niang isn’t available.
To bolster their depth ahead of Sunday’s game against the Steelers, the Chiefs elevated punter Johnny Townsend, cornerback Josh Jackson, rookie cornerbck Dicaprio Bootle and tight end Nakia Griffin-Stewart from their practice squad. Townsend replaces his brother, Tommy, who is on the reserve/COVID-19 list.
Additionally, the Chiefs announced that quarterbacks coach/pass game coordinator Mike Kafka, running backs coach Greg Lewis and assistant offensive line coach Corey Matthaei have entered the COVID-19 protocols. They will not be available for Sunday’s game.
The Star’s Herbie Teope contributed to this report.
