For the second consecutive season, the Kansas City Chiefs will have to spend some time operating with little wide receiver depth.
On the third offensive play of Friday night’s matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers, wide receiver Xavier Worthy suffered what appeared to be a painful shoulder injury when he collided with tight end Travis Kelce as the two players were running crossing routes. Worthy did not return to the field in Kansas City’s 27-21 loss.
Reports on Sunday morning indicated Worthy had sustained a shoulder dislocation, without giving a clear timeline for his return.
In Monday’s press availability, head coach Andy Reid didn’t provide any further details about the injury, but did characterize it as “day-to-day.”
In shoulder dislocations, no news can be good news.
The shoulder is a ball-and-socket joint, with the humerus bone acting as the “ball” fitting into the glenoid fossa of the scapula — the “socket.” This forms the glenohumeral joint, which is the structure affected in a dislocated shoulder.
Since it is a ball-and-socket structure, the glenohumeral joint allows movement in multiple planes. But given enough force, it can be dislocated.
When this happens, imaging is used to determine the extent of the injury. In a shoulder dislocation, the most concerning anatomical structure is the labrum — a thick rim of cartilaginous tissue which serves to deepen the glenoid fossa. This stabilizes the joint in all planes of motion.
In a traumatic shoulder dislocation, a labrum tear is likely to be the first injury the medical staff would want to rule out through an MRI. Given the mechanism of Worthy’s injury — the anterior-to-posterior force to the front of his shoulder from the collision with Kelce — a posterior labral tear would be most likely. This is called a SLAP tear (for superior labrum anterior to posterior). Labrum tears can lead to popping, grinding, decreased range of motion, pain and instability of the shoulder joint.
Other injuries would also be possible, including bony fractures or muscle strains and tears. But even if no other structures are damaged, additional dislocations can occur after the joint’s stability has been compromised.
Given what we know, it is likely Worthy will return to play this season. This does not suggest the absence of other structural damage. Instead, it simply means Worthy will be able to play through the injury — whether it is only a dislocation or something more.
Worthy’s return to play will vary depending on the extent of the injury. It’s fair to assume he will miss at least 3-4 weeks. If the dislocation is more severe — or there are structural injuries — he could be out 6-8 weeks.
Whenever he returns, Worthy is likely to wear a brace for the remainder of the season, giving his shoulder additional support and stability. He will, however, be at risk for additional dislocations — and will eventually require surgical intervention.
The Chiefs’ offense is trying to re-establish itself by bringing back the deep ball. Worthy’s speed and efficient route running make him a key player in the team’s offense, which must now change to allow for his absence.
But this is not new territory for Kansas City. Just a year ago, the team lost both Hollywood Brown and Rashee Rice to long-term injuries early in the season. Just as it did in 2024, the offense will have to adjust, which will give opportunities to young receivers like Jalen Royals (himself recovering from knee tendonitis) and Tyquan Thornton.
The Chiefs’ road to a fourth consecutive Super Bowl was never going to be easy. While it just got a little bit tougher, the team has already proven it can overcome this kind of adversity.
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