Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce questionable for opener vs Lions with knee injury

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs' Travis Kelce was held out of Wednesday's final workout and listed as questionable for Thursday night's season opener against Detroit, one day after the All-Pro tight end hyperextended his knee in practice.

Kelce was the only player to carry an injury designation for the Super Bowl champions, who will be raising their latest banner before the first game of the NFL season.

That means that wide receiver Kadarius Toney and cornerback L'Jarius Sneed, both of whom have dealt with knee injuries throughout training camp, are expected to be in the lineup.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid did not discuss Kelce's injury in detail after Tuesday's practice, but a person familiar with the tests taken afterward told The Associated Press that there was no ligament damage. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the test results.

Kelce's brother and podcast partner, Eagles center Jason Kelce, told WIP on Wednesday that “he's got some swelling going on," and alluded to a bruise on the bone that could take some time to heal.

“From what we know right now,” Jason Kelce said, “his knee is fine. It's about getting that swelling down.”

The 33-year-old Kelce has not missed a game to injury since his rookie season in 2013, when he played in just one game before having a microfracture procedure to fix a cartilage problem in his knee. Kelce has twice been held out of meaningless games to end the regular season and missed a game in December 2021 when he tested positive to COVID-19.

Kelce had a career-high 110 passes for 1,338 yards and 12 touchdowns last season. That was enough to be voted first-team All-Pro for the fourth time and get selected to the Pro Bowl for the eighth straight season.

“I’ve been very fortunate that we have the best training staff in the league,” Kelce said earlier in the week, before he hurt his knee on a red zone play. "There’s a lot that goes into it. You just have to be a professional, and you just have to be very fortunate.

“Actually,” he said, “there’s lot of fortune that goes into the game and staying healthy and being out there every week.”

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