Although the Kansas City Chiefs came out of Week 10 with a win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, they did so while losing wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster to a scary injury.
In the 27-17 win, Smith-Schuster took a hit from Jaguars safety Andre Cisco on third down in the second quarter that left JuJu in visible pain on the ground. Shortly after, the Chiefs ruled out Smith-Schuster (concussion protocol) for the remainder of the game.
#Chiefs WR JuJu Smith-Schuster knocked out of the game due to a scary hit by a #Jaguars defender. Hope he’s okay. #ChiefsKingdom
After the game, head coach Andy Reid confirmed to reporters that JuJu had suffered a concussion, as did cornerback Chris Lammons.
Head coach Andy Reid confirmed WR JuJu Smith-Schuster and CB Chris Lammons have concussions. RT Andrew Wylie sprained his elbow.
Reid also told reporters that the officials told him a flag was thrown and then picked up following the hit on Smith-Schuster because it was a shoulder-to-shoulder hit. However, Chiefs players seem to disagree with the officials picking up the flag.
Chiefs Players Sound Off on JuJu Hit
After the game, PJ Green of Fox 4 in Kansas City caught up with several Chiefs players that reacted to the hit on JuJu.
“I didn’t agree with that call,” safety Justin Reid said of the play. “They threw the flag, they ended up picking it up. That’s a player safety thing. Really looking out for our guy, praying for (JuJu’s) health … but that play was unnecessary.”
Receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who took a vicious hit from Cisco two plays after he hit JuJu, also reacted to the play.
“I’m standing right in front of him, and, you know, those kinds of hits are not welcome in this game, man,” MVS said. “Because we are all playing and putting our lives on the line every single play, and you never want to see a guy go down like that, and then for me to come in and get that same kind of hit two plays later and there’s no flag, no penalty… are they protecting us?”
A few reactions to JuJu Smith-Schuster being knocked out the game.
Justin Reid: “We were pissed.”
MVS: “Are they really protecting us?”
Isiah Pacheco: “It brought tears to my eyes.
#Chiefs
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was also asked about the hit during his postgame presser.
“Yeah, it’s tough man. I don’t think there was any like ill‐intent from the player,” Mahomes said on November 13. “I mean he’s just trying to knock the ball loose and do stuff like that but obviously there was some helmet‐to‐helmet contact, and we want to get that out of the league as much as possible for player safety. So, if we can review that and kind of make it to where there can be some type of penalty or something. I mean obviously you want to get that stuff out of the league as much as possible.”
Chiefs Advance to 7-2 After Beating JAX
The main reason for Kansas City’s victory over Jacksonville in Week 10 was quarterback Patrick Mahomes. He completed 26-of-35 pass attempts for 331 yards and 4 touchdowns. He also had 1 interception.
One of the other top offensive performers for the Chiefs was newly-added receiver Kadarius Toney, who caught 4 passes for 57 yards and scored his first NFL touchdown. He also picked up 32 yards on the ground on 2 carries, most of which came on a 32-yard jet sweep.
#Chiefs WR Kadarius Toney picks up 32 yards on the jet sweep. #ChiefsKingdom
The leading receiver for Kansas City was tight end Travis Kelce, who caught 6 passes for 81 yards and had 1 receiving touchdown.
Rookie running back Isiah Pacheco had his largest workload as a Chief during the Week 10 outing. He carried the ball 16 times for 82 yards — 5.1 yards per carry.
Kansas City’s defense benefited from a favorable game script against Jacksonville, which helped keep points off the board despite an overall efficient day for the Jaguars’ offense. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence completed 29-of-40 pass attempts for 259 yards and 2 passing touchdowns. He was also sacked 5 times.
The leading receiver for the Jaguars was Christian Kirk, who had 9 catches for 105 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Jaguars second-year running back Travis Etienne, who is in the midst of a breakout campaign after missing his rookie season due to injury, gained 45 yards on 11 carries.
Next up on Kansas City’s schedule is a Sunday Night Football matchup on the road against the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers (5-4) on November 20.
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Chiefs Players Erupt Over WR JuJu Smith-Schuster Being Injured