The Kansas City Chiefs placed All-Pro left guard Joe Thuney on injured reserve Saturday, one day prior to Super Bowl LVIII.
Thuney has a pectoral injury, which also sidelined him for the AFC Championship Game against the Baltimore Ravens on Jan. 28.
Kansas City also activated running back Jerick McKinnon from injured reserve and elevated nose tackle Mike Pennel from the practice squad ahead of the matchup against the San Francisco 49ers.
McKinnon was listed as questionable on Friday’s injury report because of a groin injury suffered against the New England Patriots on Dec. 17. He was limited at practice all this week.
Thuney also was listed as questionable for the game prior to Saturday’s development. Nick Allegretti is again expected to fill in for Thuney, a three-time Super Bowl champion.
Thuney, 31, started all 17 regular-season games and Kansas City’s first two playoff games. He was injured in the divisional playoff win at Buffalo on Jan. 21.
In his third season with Kansas City, McKinnon had 21 carries for 60 yards and a touchdown in 12 games and caught four touchdown passes among his 25 receptions for 192 yards.
Isiah Pacheco is the team’s top back. He leads a Kansas City rushing attack that also includes Clyde Edwards-Helaire.
A 2014 third-round draft pick by the Minnesota Vikings out of Georgia Southern, McKinnon has 2,650 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns, to go along with 269 catches for 2,048 yards and 20 touchdowns for the Vikings (2014-17), 49ers (2020) and Chiefs.
McKinnon, 31, missed the 2018-19 seasons with San Francisco after tearing the ACL in his knee during a 2018 preseason game.
Pennel, 32, played in three regular-season games and two postseason games for the Chiefs this season.
–Field Level Media