Florio: Zay Flowers (hamstring) will have MRI

The Chiefs made head athletic trainer Rick Burkholder available to the media to explain the 2026 Simmons Saga today. On August 17th, the young left tackle reported calf discomfort in the same leg that he underwent a patellar tendon repair in 2024. Chiefs trainers discovered that a bulging, herniated disc in his lumbar spine was causing the lower-leg issue. According to Burkholder, offensive linemen occasionally deal with this type of disc issue, but Simmons’ issue was complicated because it was abnormally high up in the lumbar spine. Simmons consulted with a well-regarded spine specialist, who recommended rehabilitation instead of surgery. Imaging taken early in the rehab process showed improvement, so they stayed the course, but unfortunately, Simmons’ recovery has recently plateaued, leading to the injured reserve placement. Simmons will be eligible to return for the Chiefs’ Week 11 game against the Cardinals.

Love didn’t practice on Wednesday after missing Week 6. It doesn’t sound like he will practice at all this week. Tyler Allgeier and Bam Knight will split the backfield again this week. Allgeier out-carried Knight 18-15 last week, but Knight was far more effective, running for 80 yards in total. Allgeier posted just 38 yards. He still figures to be the lead runner this week, but Allgeier shine as a plug-and-play RB2 is waning headed into Week 7.

Love got checked out by the team’s chiropractor after the game and was listed as limited for yesterday’s practice. LaFleur told reporters they haven’t determined whether he will be limited for today’s session. Either way, he said yesterday that there is no chance Love misses Week 7, so the practice reports are a moot point. Love is a top-half QB1 for his date with Detroit this week.

The same is true of Matthew Golden, who is dealing with a shoulder issue. Both players were estimated as limited participants for Wednesday’s walkthrough. It doesn’t look like either wideout is at risk of missing the Packers’ upcoming shootout with Detroit. Watson is currently fifth in the league in receiving yards at 538. Golden is sixth at 501. Both players hold a spot in the WR1 ranks heading into Week 7.

Barkley will unfortunately return to a team without Jalen Hurts, but the Eagles’ offense is otherwise getting healthier ahead of a must-win matchup with the Cowboys. Barkley has been out since Week 4 because of the hamstring issue. Even in his first game back, we would expect Barkley to get the lion’s share of the backfield touches against a Dallas defense that is giving up the 10th-most fantasy points to running backs. Barkley would be, at worst, an RB2 for his Week 7 return.

Charbonnet was expected to get a full week of practice, so this is no surprise. He is listed as a full participant for the first time since returning to practice and is trending to be activated off the physically unable to perform list ahead of a Week 7 matchup against the Chiefs. With Jadarian Price on injured reserve, he is headed for a sizeable share of the Seahawks’ ambiguous backfield. Charbonnet is in the RB3 ranks if activated.

Mason is firmly on track to play in Week 7 against the Colts. He should tentatively be expected to lead the backfield in carries right away, with Aaron Jones potentially settling into a 1B role. The Colts’ defense is not an imposing unit, so both running backs are FLEX-viable this week.

Bowers is usually a limited practice participant due to his knee injury, before upgrading to full and eventually playing. However, this week is notable as he was listed with hamstring and calf injuries instead of a knee injury. He was still limited as usual on Wednesday but the new designations are something to keep an eye on throughout the week.

In a semi-surprising twist of fate, the Raiders running back on the practice report with injuries is Washington, who was limited with foot and back injuries on Wednesday. Ashton Jeanty was not listed on the practice report. A limited practice indicates Washington is still trending to play Week 7, but with him appearing on the injury report and Jeanty off, any hopes for Washington achieving standalone fantasy value will have to wait.

McDuffie injured his groin during last Thursday’s practice and did not play in Week 6 against the Cardinals. He starts out this week not practicing, putting him on the wrong side of questionable for Week 7. Also not practicing was LB Nate Landman (concussion). The Rams defense continues to lose players to injury; the Raiders face this defense in Week 7 and could see more fruitful fantasy performances than usual.