A hamstring injury will limit Trent McDuffie's rookie-year participation. The Chiefs placed the first-round cornerback pick on IR Tuesday.
McDuffie played 32 defensive snaps in the Chiefs’ Week 1 win over the Cardinals. After suffering the injury, McDuffie was carted to the visitors’ locker room. The Chiefs will shut him down for at least four games.
After letting Charvarius Ward defect to San Francisco in free agency in March, the Chiefs have formed a trend of not devoting much money to their cornerback spot in recent years, but they did replace Ward via the draft. After acquiring an additional first-round pick via the Tyreek Hill trade, the Chiefs used it to move into position for McDuffie — this year’s No. 21 overall choice.
As expected, McDuffie worked as a starter in his first NFL game. The former Pac-12 standout should be expected to return when first eligible (Week 6) or not long after. The Chiefs used seventh-round rookie Jaylen Watson in McDuffie’s place following the injury; Rashad Fenton and L’Jarius Sneed reside as Kansas City’s top healthy cornerbacks. The Chiefs drafted three corners this year. The other one, fourth-rounder Joshua Williams, joins Chris Lammons in rounding out the team’s active-roster contingent at this position.
With the fifth-year option allowing the Chiefs to keep McDuffie through 2026 on his rookie contract, the team obviously has high hopes for the 5-foot-11 defender. No other former Day 1 or Day 2 picks are on Kansas City’s roster at the position. McDuffie was the Chiefs’ first Round 1 corner selection since fellow Washington product Marcus Peters in 2015.
More must-reads: