Chiefs lose LT Fisher to injury
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Chiefs’ quest for a repeat Super Bowl championship will continue without a key member of their offensive line.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Sunday night that “it doesn’t look too good” with starting left tackle Eric Fisher’s Achilles injury.
Less than 24 hours later, the bad news arrived.
“He’s got a torn Achilles tendon,” Reid said Monday. “They’re observing now exactly how bad, what needs to be done here and how soon.”
Fisher, a two-time Pro Bowl selection, suffered what is typically a season-ending injury early in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 38-24 win over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC championship game.
Fisher’s injury represents a significant blow, especially when considering the Chiefs have been without right tackle Mitchell Schwartz since Week 6 of the regular season. Schwartz remains on injured reserve with a back injury, and it doesn’t sound like there’s a lot of hope for the offensive lineman’s return in time to face Tampa Bay in Super Bowl LV on Feb. 7.
Rodgers’ future part of ‘unknowns’
Aaron Rodgers said he’s not sure what his future holds in Green Bay. That was all it took to raise concerns about the Packers’ ability to contend in 2021 and beyond.
After a dispiriting 31-26 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Sunday’s NFC championship game, it didn’t take long for questions about the team’s longterm commitment to Rodgers, 37, to resurface.
Rodgers said “a lot of guys’ futures are uncertain, myself included.” Rodgers has three years remaining on the fouryear, $118 million extension he signed in August 2018, but the two-time MVP has acknowledged on multiple occasions that his hopes of finishing his career in Green Bay were complicated by the Packers’ decision to select Utah State quarterback Jordan Love in the 2020 draft.
“There’s a lot of unknowns going into this offseason now,” Rodgers said. “I’m going to have to take some time away for sure and clear my head and just kind of see what’s going on with everything. But it’s pretty tough right now, especially thinking about the guys who may or may not be here next year. There’s always change. That’s the only constant in this business.”
Elder Brady reveals battle with COVID
Tom Brady’s first season with Tampa Bay got off to a somewhat rocky start, as he threw three interceptions and compiled quarterback rating marks of 40.3 and 44.8 over his first two games with the Buccaneers, two of his worst performances of a season that once again will end in the Super Bowl.
But his mind likely was elsewhere: His father, Tom Brady Sr., told ESPN that he and his wife, Galynn, battled COVID-19 at the start of the season, with Brady Sr. needing hospitalization.
He said he had been hospitalized with COVID “for almost three weeks” at the start of the regular season.
Odds and ends
Indianapolis Colts quarterbacks coach Marcus Brady has been promoted to offensive coordinator. He will become the NFL’S third Black offensive coordinator, replacing Nick Sirianni who took Philadelphia head coaching job last week. … The Los Angeles Chargers have agreed to terms with Joe Lombardi as offensive coordinator, Renaldo Hill as defensive coordinator and Derius Swinton II as special teams coordinator. …
The Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t look very far to find a new offensive coordinator, promoting quarterbacks coach Matt Canada to the position to replace Randy Fichtner, who contract was not renewed. … Shane Steichen will be Philadelphia’s offensive coordinator . Steichen was the Los Angeles Chargers’ offensive coordinator before losing the job when head coach Anthony Lynn was fired.