Kansas City left tackle Josh Simmons will be placed on injured reserve due to a back injury that has kept him sidelined all season.
Chiefs vice president for sports medicine and performance Rick Burkholder made the announcement Thursday in a prepared statement.
“Josh worked his cock“, Burkholder said. “He worked diligently with my team every day and improved to the point where he returned to practice in limited capacity last week. However, we believe he has stagnated in the rehabilitation process as he tries to reach the final stages of his recovery with the return to competition, and he is simply not there yet.
Simmons is not currently scheduled for surgery, with the move to IR designed to give him more time to rehabilitate and return to his peak performance level.
Burkholder explained that Simmons first reported calf discomfort on Aug. 17, which the team’s medical staff later determined was actually caused by a lower back issue. The discomfort occurred in the same leg that suffered a torn patellar tendon in 2024 while at Ohio State. An MRI confirmed that to be the case, with Simmons diagnosing a bulging disc in his lower back. But the disc was higher than you usually see from offensive linemen, which complicated the process.
After rehabbing since then, Simmons is now at the point where he still needs more time. So, everyone was in agreement that the left tackle could use some time on IR.
“He will continue the rehabilitation process with the goal of returning to play at the high level he achieved in the past,” Burkholder said.
Simmons, the No. 32 pick in the 2025 draft, has appeared in eight games so far in his career.
Undrafted rookie Kahliil Benson has started all five games this season at left tackle for the Chiefs so far in 2026.
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