KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs placed Josh Simmons on injured reserve because of a bulging disk in his lower back Thursday, guaranteeing their starting left tackle will be out at least four more weeks after having already missed the first five games of the season.
Undrafted rookie Kahlil Benson will continue to protect the blind side of Patrick Mahomes. On the right side, Jaylon Moore remains in the concussion protocol, which means Joshua Ezeudu is expected to start at that tackle position on Sunday night in Seattle.
The Chiefs chose Simmons in the first round of the 2025 draft in the hopes that he could be their franchise left tackle. He was coming off a serious knee injury at Ohio State, but the Chiefs believed he would be able to make a full recovery in time to play as a rookie.
His knee has never been a problem. But other factors have kept him off the field.
Simmons started the first five games last season before missing time to deal with personal matters. He returned to start in three more games before a fractured and dislocated hand landed him on IR for the remainder of the season.
He showed up to training camp in late July feeling good, though, and Simmons hoped his injury issues were behind him. But on Aug. 17, he reported feeling some discomfort in his calf, and the Chiefs' training staff determined it was stemming from his back.
Chiefs trainer Rick Burkholder obtained an MRI exam that confirmed the herniated and bulging disk, which was “higher up than we normally see in our offensive linemen, which complicated the case.”
The Chiefs recommended a second opinion, and a back specialist in California believed that Simmons would be able to overcome the injury with rehabilitation rather than surgery.
That is why the Chiefs had not put Simmons on injured reserve until Thursday.
“Josh worked his tail off. He worked diligently with my staff every day, and he improved to the point where he returned to practice in a limited capacity last week,” Burkholder said. “However we feel he plateaued in the recovery process. ... He's just not there yet.”
After discussing the situation with Simmons, his family and representatives, the decision was made to place him on IR.
“It was decided and agreed upon by everybody,” Burkholder said, adding that surgery still is not in the forecast.
Benson has surpassed all expectations at left tackle after the former Indiana offensive lineman stepped into role. And when pressed into duty against the Chargers last Sunday, Ezeudu faired well in Moore's place on the right side the rest of the way.
Ezeudu was a third-round pick of the Giants in the 2022 draft. The Chiefs acquired him for a seventh-round pick in August.
“He's played before,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said, “and when we brought him in, we knew that, and we knew he was a good player. So now, potentially, there's an opportunity to be in there and play, and I thought he did a nice job when he was in there this past weekend. So yeah, I think everybody around him has got confidence in him, too.”
See AP’s full NFL coverage here
Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid responds to a question during a news conference after an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Bournemouth earned the biggest win of its first European campaign by beating 10-man AC Milan 3-0 in the Europa League on Thursday after goalkeeper Mike Maignan was sent off for shoving an opponent in the face during a corner.
Bournemouth had already taken the lead from a penalty when Maignan was shown a straight red card and conceded another spot kick by putting his gloves in the face of United States midfielder Tyler Adams and pushing him to the ground.
Marcus Tavernier converted the second penalty against substitute goalkeeper Lorenzo Torriani to double the lead, and there was no way back for Milan after that. Substitute Amine Adli made it 3-0 late with a perfectly executed curling free kick.
Four other teams also have three wins from three, including Bayer Leverkusen after Jonas Hofmann scored twice in a three-minute span to secure a 2-0 victory at OFI Crete.
But Juventus was held to a 2-2 draw by Rennes after having a late winner ruled out for offside.
Hofmann netted his double late in the first half as Leverkusen continued its good start under new coach Carles Martínez, who has now overseen seven wins from eight games across all competitions since starting with a shock loss to Elversberg.
Ferencvaros also stayed perfect after a 4-1 victory over Portuguese second-division side Torreense.
In a clash of two unbeaten teams, Benfica won 4-1 at Omonia while Olympiacos needed a late own goal to secure its third straight win, 1-0 win over Sparta Prague.
Nick Woltemande converted from the spot in the 67th minute to salvage a 2-2 home draw for Juventus against Rennes, but the hosts had a potential winner by Jhon Lucumi ruled out by VAR.
It was Woltemade's third goal in three games in the competition after joining on loan from Newcastle.
The Bianconeri pressured early and took the lead on a quick attack after Zeki Çelik collected a through pass from Woltemade. But Musa Al-Taamari equalized and Boulaye Dia calmy gave the visitors the lead from the spot, sending Juve goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario the wrong way.
Like Juve, Sunderland hoped to make it three wins from three on a trip to Lech Poznań. Forward Timur Tutierov put the Premier League side ahead with a header with his first Europa League goal in the second minute but substitute Leo Bengtsson made it 1-1 in the second half to earn a first point for the Polish club.
In other results, Crystal Palace drew 2-2 with 10-man Beşiktaş, Celtic lost 2-1 at home to Celta Vigo, Hoffenheim got its first points with a 3-0 win over Ligue 1 leader Lyon and Real Sociedad had the biggest win of the night, 6-0 at Lillestrøm.
Earlier, Marseille recorded a third straight loss, 1-0 to Sturm Graz, while Union Saint-Gilloise routed Israeli champion Hapoel Beer-Sheva 4-0. That game was played without fans in Düsseldorf, Germany, after authorities in Leuven, Belgium, refused to host it due to public safety.
In Istanbul, Palace's Yeremy Pini canceled out Beşiktaş' opening goal by Wilfred Ndidi and Jean Philippe Mateta pushed the English team ahead before Junior Olaitan leveled again. The English side failed to make use of a one-man advantage after Ümit Akdağ was sent off 13 minutes from time.
Czech provincial side Jablonec kept high-scoring Brighton at bay in a 0-0 draw in the Conference League, while former Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah marked his 150th game in European competitions by scoring again for Tranbzonspor in a 2-0 win over Hearts.
It was the second goal for Salah in the competition after netting in the previous 4-2 win away at KuPS Kuopio.
See AP’s full soccer coverage here
AC Milan's Omari Hutchinson, top, and Atalanta's Relja Obric challenge for the ball during the Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Atalanta in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Bournemouth's Junior Kroupi, centre left, attends a training session ahead of the Europa League opening phase soccer match against AC Milan in Bournemouth, Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026. (Andrew Matthews/PA via AP)
