When Kansas City Chiefs rookie Clyde Edwards-Helaire had to be helped off the field during the fourth quarter of the team’s week 15 game against the New Orleans Saints, it was hard not to adopt the worst.
Edwards-Helaire apparently could not place any weight on his left leg – a sign that would usually translate to the end of a player’s season. But Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said after the game that his X-rays were negative, and the next day he reported that the Chiefs were optimistic he could be back in the Playoffs Division Round after recovering from his high ankle strain. .
For #Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire, the high ankle sprain is likely to take longer to heal than the hip strain. The team is hopeful for a playoff game, depending on its rehabilitation, and the division round is about a month away. He has time.
– Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) 21 December 2020
Reid then explained Edwards-Helaire was “ahead of schedule” last week, and fullback coach Deland McCullough provided more optimism about his possible return Thursday.
“Since he was injured, I mean he really attacked these circumstances,” McCullough said. When I saw him walking around for a few days, I said, ‘Man, what’s going on? “He just dedicated himself to getting back at a high level. So, just excited about what it looks like he’s ready to come here again in a few weeks, and we’ll keep going. ”
In the Chiefs’ Week 16 game against the Atlanta Falcons, Darrel Williams and Le’Veon Bell split the work, but in this weekend’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers, it could be more of Williams and Darwin Thompson, as Bell has an apparent knee problem. nurse. .
The Chiefs will only play a meaningful game again in the weekend of January 16, giving Edwards-Helaire enough time. The 21-year-old LSU product had 1,100 scrumhalves and five touchdowns in his first pro season.