Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith is out Sunday against the San Diego Chargers with a lacerated spleen, backup Chase Daniel will make second start.
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The Kansas City Chiefs were hoping to build in their incredible season last year and make it past the Wild Card round of the AFC Playoffs. They may not even make it to the Wild Card round after the season they’ve had though, and their final week of the season will see their playoff hopes rest on the feeble shoulders of Chase Daniel.
According to Ian Rapoport from NFL Network, the Chiefs will be without starting quarterback Alex Smith, who has a lacerated spleen and will miss the final game of the regular season. It’s now Chase Daniel’s job to ensure it’s not the last Chiefs game of the 2014 NFL season.
Chase Daniel to make his 2nd start RT @adamteicher: Chiefs trainer Rick Burkholder says Alex Smith has lacerated spleen, will not play Sun
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 26, 2014
Smith being out for the Chiefs on Sunday could sink the playoff hopes across the board in the AFC, as every other team hoping for the sixth seed needs a Chiefs win in order to have any shot. According to Pro Football Talk, Smith has practiced this week and doesn’t need surgery to fix the issue, however, the injury could be made more severe with a well-placed shot during a game.
"“It wasn’t until after I dressed and adrenaline wore off that I noticed anything. I didn’t relate it to a hit,” Smith said."
This is the second year in a row that Chiefs backup Chase Daniels will take over for the Chiefs in Week 17 against the Chargers. Last year, the Chiefs started Daniels in order to rest Smith for the playoffs. The Chiefs lost 27-24 in overtime and Daniels threw for one touchdown, 200 yards on 21 of 30 attempts.
The Chargers would obviously be pretty happy to take the same result this year as a win puts them immediately in the sixth seed position with no help from other teams. On the other hand, the Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans and obviously the Chiefs all need the Chargers to lose to have any shot at getting in.
Suddenly, it’s not looking so good for the rest of the AFC.
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