With Super Bowl LVII this Sunday, health is one of the major storylines as it seems to be focused entirely on one team, the Kansas City Chiefs. After losing three wide receivers in the AFC Championship Game to injury, who will Patrick Mahomes have to throw to in the Super Bowl, and is his ankle okay?
Using the OddsTrader BetStation, we look at the Injury Tracker to update the status of a few injuries you should take note of for your prop bets and other NFL picks for Super Bowl Sunday.
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Sunday, February 12, 2023 – 06:30 PM EST at State Farm Stadium
QB Patrick Mahomes (Kansas City Chiefs)
- Injury: Ankle
- Game Status: No injury designation
The Chiefs have listed Patrick Mahomes as a full participant in Wednesday’s practice and he will not carry an injury designation into the Super Bowl after suffering a high-ankle sprain in the divisional round of the playoffs.
Head coach Andy Reid has said that Mahomes continues to rehab and receive treatment, and the expectations are that he will not be 100% for the Super Bowl. But he will be able to play and run just about everything in the playbook.
Mahomes expects the adrenaline of playing in the Super Bowl for the third time to carry him through the game, but it is still something to watch for as he faces the best pass rush he has seen this season.
WR Mecole Hardman (Kansas City Chiefs)
- Injury: Pelvis
- Game Status: Out (IR)
The most serious of the three wide receiver injuries for the Chiefs is Mecole Hardman, who has been placed on injured reserve with his pelvis injury, ending his season. He will not play this week.
Hardman played 15 snaps against the Bengals, his first snaps since Week 9, so the Chiefs have gotten very used to playing without him this season. He did have six touchdowns for the Chiefs and a few 70-yard games, so it is not an irrelevant loss, but it does test the depth of the Chiefs in this matchup.
Hardman is more of a gadget player the Chiefs can use on runs, jet sweeps, and sometimes get him deep down the field. He started as a poor man’s Tyreek Hill but never really settled into that role. The Chiefs have made good use of Jerick McKinnon as a receiving back in the second half of the season since Hardman was injured.
WR Kadarius Toney (Kansas City Chiefs)
- Injury: Ankle/Hamstring
- Game Status: Questionable
The most troubling injury news for the Chiefs this week is Kadarius Toney, which is the story of his career. He has an ankle/hamstring issue, and while he practiced, he was in limited participation while the rest of the injured Chiefs had full practice.
Still, limited practice on a Wednesday is far better news than no practice for Toney. There is a good chance he will play this weekend, but whether he will be effective or at all useful in the game is a whole different story. Playing him as a prop pick would be risky unless you take the under.
WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (Kansas City Chiefs)
- Injury: Knee
- Game Status: Questionable
Knee swelling was the concern for JuJu Smith-Schuster during the bye week, but that apparently has improved and he was listed as a full participant in practice on Wednesday, a good sign that he will be available Sunday.
This can be a really tough matchup for JuJu as the Eagles have excellent corners in Darius Slay and James Bradberry. But if he can play and be more than a decoy, then it will help the Chiefs who are in desperate need of healthy wide receivers.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling can command one side, Toney will hopefully play some in the slot, and JuJu can move around the defense. But the Chiefs should look to make Justin Watson, the team’s fifth-leading receiver in the regular season (315 yards), active for this game just in case something happens like last time. The Chiefs do not want to be down to Skyy Moore and Marcus Kemp.
CB L’Jarius Sneed (Kansas City Chiefs)
- Injury: Concussion
- Game Status: Questionable
The Chiefs have received very good news on arguably their most important cornerback. L’Jarius Sneed cleared the concussion protocol and was a full participant in Wednesday’s practice. He should be good to go this week.
The Chiefs definitely need him as A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith are excellent wide receivers who can beat you in a variety of ways. Sneed has more experience than many of the defensive backs in Kansas City, which is playing a lot of rookies right now. The Chiefs were able to survive Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins last time out with Sneed only playing 4 snaps, so his presence will be a big boost for the secondary here.
Sneed gets targeted a lot – 104 times compared to 71 for seventh-round rookie Jaylen Watson and 51 for first-round rookie Trent McDuffie – but he only allows 6.2 yards per target. Sneed has only allowed one touchdown since Week 11 and he is tied with Juan Thornhill with three interceptions to lead the Chiefs.
OT Lane Johnson (Philadelphia Eagles)
- Injury: Groin
- Game Status: Questionable
The Eagles actually listed more players (three) as limited practice participants on Wednesday than the Chiefs did, but the key one is right tackle Lane Johnson. We know he injured his groin late in the season and says he tore it again in the divisional round by coming back to play ahead of time. But he is a tough player and plans to finish this season out the right way.
Surgery can wait when a Super Bowl is on the line. This bye week should be useful to both teams to help with these injuries, and both quarterbacks needed the week off too.
Do not forget about Jalen Hurts’ shoulder injury from Week 15. But the quarterbacks are coming into this game with no injury designation, and there will be no excuses on Sunday when the better team wins the game.
