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With the Kansas City Chiefs’ special teams room already down one pivotal asset, the defending AFC champions are bringing in a familiar face as insurance.
The Chiefs are expected to sign punter Johnny Townsend to their practice squad, according to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero.
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If Townsend’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he’s the brother of Kansas City’s punter, Tommy Townsend. This will be the second time the brothers will spend time on the same roster, as the Chiefs signed Johnny to the practice squad in 2020 as well, which was Tommy’s rookie season in Kansas City.
Kicker Harrison Butker was placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 early in Week 16, which made the possibility of an outbreak happening among the special teams players realistic. The team promoted kicker Elliott Fry to the 53-man roster from the practice squad to replace Butker in Week 16. Butker is unvaccinated and thus will be sidelined for the Chiefs’ December 26 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, per NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport.
Head coach Andy Reid announced on Friday, December 24 that Tommy Townsend has been placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. So, Johnny will likely be elevated from the practice squad to the 53-man roster for Week 16 and serve as the team’s primary punter.
Johnny entered the league as a fifth-round draft pick of the then-Oakland Raiders in the 2018 NFL Draft. After just one season with the Raiders, Townsend was waived by the Chiefs’ AFC West rivals in August of 2019. Since then, he has spent time with the New York Giants, Baltimore Ravens, Chiefs, and most recently the Tennessee Titans. This season, Townsend played in three games for Tennessee, recording 11 punts for an average of 42.3 yards per punt, per Pro Football Reference.
Chiefs’ COVID Outbreak Included Butker
On Monday, December 20, 51 NFL players were placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, three of which were Chiefs. Among the Kansas City players placed on the list were tight end Travis Kelce, Butker, and cornerback Charvarius Ward.
Then on Tuesday, December 21, another seven Chiefs players were placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, which included wide receiver Tyreek Hill, cornerback Rashad Fenton, linebacker Nick Bolton, offensive linemen Kyle Long and Lucas Niang, tight end Blake Bell, and defensive back Armani Watts, per the NFL’s official transaction wire.
While it seemed like the Chiefs were on track to have a massive outbreak — one that could force the NFL to reschedule their outing against the Steelers — the team received positive news following an onslaught of player positives.
On Wednesday, December 22, Kansas City recorded no new positive tests among the players, per the transaction wire. The Chiefs also welcomed back linebacker Willie Gay and wide receiver Josh Gordon that same day from the Reserve/COVID-19 list.
On Thursday, December 23, Kansas City once again recorded no new player positives. The team also welcomed back defensive tackle Chris Jones — who had been on the Reserve/COVID list since Tuesday, December 14 — and Ward, as they were activated from this list, per the transaction wire on Thursday.
Big Red on Team’s COVID Outbreak
After two of Kansas City’s top players — Kelce and Hill — tested positive for COVID-19, which puts them in jeopardy of missing the Chiefs’ game against Pittsburgh, head coach Andy Reid reacted to the struggles that Kansas City — as well as the other 31 teams — have to overcome because of the pandemic.
“We’ve gone through this for two years now, so anything is possible, and we get it. The next guy
has got to be ready to go,” Reid said during his press conference on Wednesday, December 22. “They’ve given us opportunities to replace people with the number of practice squad and elevations, and this and that. So, we just go next man up and roll and hope those guys get better. It’s the same way on the other side with the fellas, they’ve got to stay prepared too. They don’t know when they’ll test back in, so they’ve got to be ready to go that way too. It’s a crazy thing that’s in motion, fluid as you’d say, so we’ve just got to hang with it and make sure everybody prepares themselves and is ready to play.”
READ MORE:
- Chiefs Provide Update on Chris Jones’ Week 16 Availability
- 2 Chiefs Superstars Nearly Became Jets in 2013: Report
- Patrick Mahomes Talks up Josh Gordon’s New ‘Expanded Role’ vs. Steelers