No Jody Fortson at Chiefs practice Thursday, but Lucas Niang continued to work

The Kansas City Chiefs returned to the practice field Thursday as they continued to prepare to take on the Tennessee Titans on Sunday Night Football.

Ahead of taking the field, the Chiefs announced tight end Jody Fortson would miss his second straight day of practice. Fortson was listed with a quad injury (and an illness) on the initial injury report that was released on Wednesday.

Considering Blake Bell is still on injured reserve and the Chiefs only roster two other tight ends — Travis Kelce and Noah Gray — it remains to be seen whether practice-squad tight end Jordan Franks gets the call-up on Sunday. Franks has yet to make his Chiefs debut and last appeared in a regular-season game for the Cleveland Browns in September of 2021.

Offensive lineman Lucas Niang, who returned to the practice field on Wednesday, continued to work. Offensive line coach Andy Heck has liked what he has seen so far.

“Lucas has been working really hard with our training staff and the nutritionists and doing all the right things that way,” said Heck. “[Wednesday] was the first time we got to see him out there on the field. It was a great start for him. I’m excited to see how he progresses. There will be a lot to evaluate here in the coming days and weeks.”

Like in the case of cornerback Trent McDuffie — who also was spotted practicing on Thursday — the Chiefs are likely to ramp Niang up over the next couple of weeks before any lineup change. Niang suffered a torn patella tendon in his left knee in last year’s Week 17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.