Latest injury update suggests Chiefs need to protect Patrick Mahomes from himself

Despite defeating the Cleveland Browns handily on Sunday, the Kansas City Chiefs suffered an injury scare they cannot afford moving forward. Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes, arguably the best at his position in the NFL, hurt his ankle thanks to a collapsing pocket with a multi-touchdown lead in the fourth quarter.

Chiefs fans were furious with head coach Andy Reid, who could've removed Mahomes from the game after going up three scores, but instead opted to keep him in with some odd play-calling choices, as detailed by FanSided's Alicia de Artola.

"Kansas City was up by 14 at the half and early in the third quarter they took a 21-point lead. All they had to do was give the ball to the running backs and kill the clock. Instead, Reid and Matt Nagy dialed up 18 second-half pass attempts. There were two three-and-outs in the third quarter featuring six Mahomes incompletions," de Artola wrote.

Whether Reid, Nagy and the Chiefs wanted to send a message or pad the stats a bit for some style points, their plan backfired and then some. Mahomes suffered an ankle sprain and is considered week-to-week – that is unless he convinces the Chiefs to let him play on a bum ankle.

Chiefs need to protect Patrick Mahomes from himself

As Ian Rapoport says, Mahomes did suffer a high-ankle sprain, but this is an issue he has played through before. While it'll limit Mahomes mobility, he can still stand in the pocket and make all the throws.

Would it be smart for Mahomes to play on Saturday against the Texans? No, but that hasn't stopped him before.

If Reid and the Chiefs coaching staff has any say in the matter – which they ought to, given the amount of money Mahomes makes courtesy of ownership – the star QB should sit out against Houston, at the very least. The Chiefs have three games in 11 days, including a Christmas showdown against the Steelers defense. Mahomes would be best suited healing up in time for Pittsburgh than playing against Houston. The Chiefs received promising news this time around, but Mahomes may not get so lucky the next time he takes a hit.

NFL players have a warrior mentality, and Mahomes is among them. If he feels well enough to play, he'll push to do so. The Chiefs could put an end to all that chatter right now before it gets out of hand. Carson Wentz is capable, if used sparingly.