Chiefs Rookie Mansoor Delane Day to Day With Shoulder Injury

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said on Monday, November 2, that rookie cornerback Mansoor Delane is day to day with the right shoulder injury that kept him out of Sunday's loss to the Denver Broncos, and that Delane has a chance to play this week against the New York Jets.

"It's just a matter of it being strong enough to get out there," Reid said in his Monday news conference, via Nate Taylor of ESPN, in the report carried by Pro Football Talk. "There's a chance that he'll be able to get himself out there this week. Again, it's just how strong it is. It's going to be a day to day thing." FantasyPros carried the same quote and the same day to day label on Monday afternoon, November 2, at 1:59 p.m. Eastern, citing Taylor's report from the news conference.

Delane, the No. 6 overall pick in this year's draft, has battled the shoulder all season. It kept him in a non contact jersey for much of the summer, and he has appeared on the injury report several times since. The Chiefs first listed him as questionable for the Broncos game, then downgraded him to out on Saturday, October 31. He did not play on Sunday, November 1, when Denver beat Kansas City and tightened the AFC West race.

The numbers show what Kansas City loses without him. Delane has five passes defensed, three tackles for loss and an interception in five games this season, according to Pro Football Talk. Heavy's pregame report, citing the same season line, put his tackle total at 27, with the interception coming in the Week 1 win over Denver. Sports Illustrated reported he had played 287 defensive snaps in his five games, about 83 percent of the snaps available, as a starter in coordinator Steve Spagnuolo's defense.

A thin cornerback room

Delane was not the only loss on Saturday. The Chiefs also placed veteran cornerback L'Jarius Sneed on injured reserve on October 31, the team announced, so Kansas City played Denver without two cornerbacks and will be short at the position again this week if Delane cannot go. That is the practical weight of the day to day tag: Reid is not describing a star's minor knock, he is describing the depth chart at a position where the Chiefs have already spent their spare parts.

Why it matters

First round cornerbacks are drafted to travel with top receivers, and Kansas City took Delane sixth overall to do exactly that. A shoulder that has followed him from summer workouts into November is a different kind of problem than one missed game. Shoulders decide whether a corner can press at the line, reach for a ball and tackle in the open field. Reid's wording on Monday was careful for a reason: the team is waiting on strength, not on pain tolerance, and strength is the thing a press corner cannot fake.

What happens next

The first practice of the week on Wednesday will tell more than any quote. If Delane practices in full, the Jets game is in reach. If he is limited or held out again, Kansas City will plan a second straight week without him, with the same group that finished the Broncos game. The Chiefs host the Jets in Week 9, and the injury report on Wednesday is the next real checkpoint.