By JAKE FENNER, US SPORTS WRITER
Published: | Updated:
After missing multiple games due to an undisclosed ‘family issue’, Kansas City Chiefs rookie offensive lineman Josh Simmons is set to return to the team.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the first-year player out of Ohio State will be back with the team over the course of the week.
Kansas City is on a bye this week after losing Sunday’s high-profile matchup against the Buffalo Bills.
Simmons has not touched the field since Week 5 of the NFL season – when the Chiefs lost on the road to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Since that game, the Chiefs have gone 3-1 – with wins over the Detroit Lions, Las Vegas Raiders, and Washington Commanders before losing in Orchard Park this Sunday.
But they’ve done so without Simmons, a key offensive player Kansas City drafted with the final pick of the first round.
Chiefs rookie offensive lineman Josh Simmons is set to return to the team this week
Previously, Chiefs coach Andy Reid declined to reveal why Simmons missed games
Nearly two weeks ago, head coach Andy Reid said in a press conference that the team had been in communication with Simmons and revealed he was ‘taking care of family’.
The coach insisted it was ‘positive and not a negative situation’ before adding: ‘He’s just taking care of business. That’s the main thing right here. When you deal with this, that’s what you do. He’s been very good about communicating it.’
Reid previously refused to address Simmons’ prolonged absence, only revealing that general manager Brett Veach is ‘handling everything.’
The coach said: ‘As far as Josh goes I don’t have any updates for you. (Brett) Veach is handling everything there and so just move on with that. Alright?’
Ahead of the game against the Lions, Patrick Mahomes revealed he was surprised by Simmons’ absence, saying, ‘I didn’t fully know, obviously we had walk-through around noon or 1pm and he wasn’t there, so I knew something was up.’
It has been claimed that Mahomes asked about Simmons, only to be told by coaches that they ‘didn’t know’ where he was.
Throughout the absence precise details have remained under wraps with none of Mahomes, Reid or the Chiefs offering any explanation for why he wasn’t with the team.
Mahomes, meanwhile, was asked if he had spoken with Simmons: ‘I’ll keep conversations between us but I’m always praying for all my teammates,’ the quarterback said. ‘I’ll keep everything else private to us.’
