The Kansas City Chiefs running backs suffered some injury scares during the preseason, but they should be good to go for the start of the season. According to the latest NFL rumors, both Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Darrel Williams should be able to play in Week 1. In other news, James Robinson is going above and beyond for those that bought his jersey, while Sean McVay is preparing for Justin Fields and Andy Dalton.
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NFL Rumors: Clyde Edwards-Helaire, James Robinson, Justin Fields
The Kansas City Chiefs only have three running backs on their depth chart, and two of them are battling injuries. Former first-round pick Clyde Edwards-Helaire suffered an ankle injury in the preseason finale, while backup Darrel Williams suffered a concussion in the same contest. Fortunately for Kansas City, both players should be ready to go for Sunday’s game against the Cleveland Browns.
Speaking to reporters, head coach Andy Reid said that “they practiced last week and did ok with it…I think we’ll be ok there.”
Edwards-Helaire, of course, was the first running back selected in the 2020 NFL Draft. Taken with the final pick of the first round, the LSU product finished his inaugural season with 803 rushing yards, 297 receiving yards, and five combined touchdowns in 13 games. Assuming he’s healthy, he should be able to eclipse those marks in 2021.
James Robinson To Sign All Old Jerseys
Running back James Robinson was one of the biggest out-of-nowhere breakouts in 2020. An undrafted rookie, Robinson became Jacksonville’s unquestioned starter for the entirety of the season. The Illinois State product hit the 1,000-yard threshold and unquestionably earned a lot of fans in Jacksonville.
The second-year pro changed jersey numbers, but he made sure that fans who already bought his jersey aren’t left with an outdated product. Taking to Twitter, Robinson said that he will sign any jersey of his old number.
I want to THANK YOU for all of the love With me changing my number to 25, I’d love to sign ANY of your #30 jerseys as a continued THANK YOU for all your support and buying my jersey. DM @JaguarsPR tonight with a picture of you wearing my jersey and we will be in touch!#DUUUVAL🤘🏾
— James Robinson (@Robinson_jamess) September 7, 2021
This is a great move by Robinson, as longtime fans of his game will still get something out of this jersey change. With Travis Etienne sidelined for the season, Robinson should be in store for another great year.
Sean McVay Preparing For Justin Fields And Andy Dalton
Despite selecting Justin Fields in the first round of the 2021, the Chicago Bears will start Andy Dalton in the Week 1’s matchup against the Los Angeles Rams. However, that doesn’t mean that Sean McVay isn’t preparing for the Ohio State product.
During a media session, McVay said that “it would be naive” to not prepare for Fields in some way, shape, or form. The coach implied that Chicago could have plays designed specifically for Fields, and McVay doesn’t want to be caught off guard if the first-round pick takes the field.
Fields is a much more mobile threat than Dalton, and it’s entirely possible that Matt Nagy and the Bears coaching staff have a few plays designed to take advantage of Fields’ athletic gifts.
Of course, it’s also possible that Fields steals the job in the second half and never looks back. The Los Angeles Rams have a great defense, so this one could get ugly fast and be effectively a repeat of the Tom Savage-Deshaun Watson situation. In 2017, Savage earned the Week 1 job but was benched at halftime after an atrocious outing against a great defense. Dalton is better than Savage, but it wouldn’t be all that surprising if history repeats itself.
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