Chiefs place Felix Anudike-Uzomah on injured reserve, ending the 2023 first-round pick's season

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs placed defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah on injured reserve Monday, ending the season for the 2023 first-round pick, who has struggled to live up to expectations following a standout career at Kansas State.

The Chiefs also waived running back Elijah Young and signed defensive end Owen Carney and linebacker Xander Mueller.

Anudike-Uzomah came out of high school in the Kansas City suburb of Lee's Summit, Missouri, and he was a popular pick when the Chiefs selected him 32nd overall in a draft they hosted in 2023. But he has just three sacks and eight tackles for loss over 34 games his first two seasons in the league, and now he will miss the upcoming season altogether.

“That's a tough thing,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “I mean, he's worked hard. We'll see where it goes. I can't tell you how long it's going to be. It's disappointing for him because he's worked so stinking hard.”

Anudike-Uzomah had been buried on the depth chart behind starting defensive ends George Karlaftis and Mike Danna, veteran pass rusher Charles Omenihu and Ashton Gillotte, a third-round pick out of Louisville in April's draft.

The Chiefs returned to their practice facility Monday following a preseason loss in Seattle last Friday night.

Among those missing the workout were defensive tackle Omarr Norman-Lott (ankle), defensive backs Mike Edwards (hamstring) and Nazeeh Johnson (shoulder), linebacker Jack Cochrane (knee) and wide receiver Jalen Royals (knee).

In a bit of positive injury news, Marquise Brown returned to the field Monday after dealing with an ankle that has sidelined him for much of training camp. Brown has sat out both of the Chiefs' preseason games, and Reid declined to say whether he would be on the field for their final exhibition game against the Bears on Friday night.

Kansas City opens the regular season against the Chargers on Sept. 5 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

“Hollywood (Brown) did a little work yesterday, which was good. He'll get a little more today and then we'll see,” Reid said. “We'll see how he progresses through this thing. But it's not a matter of wanting to be out there. He wants to do it. We're just taking it slow. We don't want any setbacks with this going forward here.”

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