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Good news on the injury front
The injured Chiefs: Justin Houston (elbow), Branden Albert (hyper-extended knee), Anthony Fasano (concussion), Eric Fisher (shoulder), Dexter McCluster (foot infection), Demetrius Harris (high ankle sprain), James Michael-Johnson (shoulder sprain)
The good news from Andy Reid: "If we practiced today, we'd have most of them back and ready to go."
That means that this could be the week that we see the return of Justin Houston, Branden Albert and Anthony Fasano. Fisher injured the same shoulder that he hurt previously. DMC's foot infection came down in the middle of last week so we'll see where he's at this week.
No let down game
"It's a tough thing to come off a win like we had in Washington and come back strong and not let your guard down , working even harder and working at getting better while still respecting your opponent. Going through that whole process, it's easy to say but hard to do. We're human beings in this business and there's a natural tendency for us humans is to let yourself go but they didn't do that. They kept their drive up and followed the process all week and came out and put together a pretty good game."
On resting injured players with a playoff berth clinched
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"We're comfortable with the guys healing up. We're not forcing anyone back in that's in a position where they would re-injure themselves. We haven't done that all season so we're not going to start doing that now or ever as long as I'm here. That's not how we roll. If the guys can play, then they're going to play. That's what they do. The rest of our season is as important to us as the beginning of the season. We're not backing off anything there."
On Jamaal Charles staying healthy
"He's good. He takes care of himself. He has a certain routine that he goes through everyday and as you know that's a tough position to play. This time of year, you see running backs and their production starts going down a little bit, he's been able to maintain a high level. I think some of that is Knile getting better and giving him an opportunity to be spotted every once in a while."
On Donald Stephenson stepping up in place of Branden Albert
"I can tell you he's doing a nice job. I think he can play either tackle and play at a high level. After however many games he's started here, I would tell you that. I'd tell you that there are some things that he knows he needs to get better at and he's wired right where he'll be working on that. I keep in mind that he is a second-year player and he's doing a nice job playing against pretty good competition."
On changing anything because they may play the Colts again in the playoff
"I don't think you do. You have enough in the playbook twhere you can draw from on both sides of the ball and special teams wise. I don't think there's any reason to do that. Plus, the season is still alive. You want to go in and give it your best shot. I'd probably tell you the same thing I told you about Denver, give them your best shot and then come back two weeks later and give them your best shot then."
On whether the Chiefs can count on special teams and defensive TDs
Read this, too
Read this, too
"I'm not sure you count on them as much as you strive to get them. In this business, you don't count on anything. You go out and work to earn the right to get yourself in the end zone. Likewise with your turnovers, it's the same mentality at all the positions. We don't count on that. We work on it and have high expectations."
On Colts head coach Chuck Pagano
"Chuck Pagano is a stud. He's a great person. He overcame a disease that was challenging his life. he stepped up and beat it along with the doctors and the support of his staff and his football team. He's a special guy and he's a good football coach on top of that. It's a family affair, his brother John is the defensive coordinator in San Diego. They grew up in a football family. He understands the game."
More from Big Red
- "In all three phases, we have plenty of room to improve and we'll keep doing that."
- Reid credits GM John Dorsey for providing the team with enough depth and competition to handle the injuries. "When someone gets hurt and the next person comes in, we're able to function at a high level," Reid said.
- Reid credits Brad Childress for one of the Chiefs touchdowns. "Part of Brad's job is to stay a week or two in advance on each team and he had that one drawn up two weeks ago and ready to go."
