During the offseason, the Kansas City Chiefs lost Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams along with Jaylen Watson. On top of that, they also lost safety Bryan Cook to the Cincinnati Bengals. With these major changes in the roster, the Chiefs drafted cornerback Mansoor Delane sixth overall in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
Under the guidance of head coach Andy Reid, Delane showed promising physical hands and sharp footwork. However, their plan did not go as intended when Delane suffered a right shoulder injury during the Week 1 game against the Denver Broncos. Fortunately for the Chiefs, there is good news on the injury front.
As reported by NFL Insider Ian Rapoport, Delane only suffered a short-term shoulder injury in Monday night’s game. His latest X-ray and CT scan results came back negative, and “there’s a lot of positivity that this is a short-term injury,” per Rapoport. The NFL insider also confirmed that, according to Reid, Delane has a “pretty good chance” to play Sunday night.
The incident happened in the first quarter on Denver’s drive, as quarterback Bo Nix threw the ball downfield, targeting wide receiver Courtland Sutton. Delane anticipated the ball perfectly, stepped in front of Sutton, and secured the first interception of his NFL career.
As he intercepted the ball, he went to run extra yardage but was hit hard by Sutton after the five-yard return. As Sutton tackled him down, he landed heavily on his right shoulder.
During the aftermath of the injury, he was sidelined for the rest of the game. This injury is a big blow to the Chiefs’ secondary depth, as they made steep investments to land Delane in their drafts. In order to draft Delane, the Chiefs traded their No. 9, No. 74 (third round), and No. 148 picks (fifth round) to the Cleveland Browns. As believed by multiple NFL pundits, Delane could’ve been sidelined for a significant amount of time, as they connected his injury with his previous shoulder blade injury that he sustained during the Chiefs’ rookie camp.
As the dust settled after his injury, Reid addressed Delane’s performance in Week 1.
“Delane’s interception there, the one play that he had, he did a nice job with that,” Reid said after Monday’s game. “I mean, that was a great job, [a] great way to start the game.”
With Mansoor Delane injured, the Chiefs went ahead with veteran Kristian Fulton to hold the defenses alongside Nohl Williams and L’Jarius Sneed against the Broncos. But there are other options as well.
Melvin Smith, who was re-signed by the Chiefs to their practice squad after being released by the Tennessee Titans. Defensive back Kader Kohou signed with the Chiefs on a one-year deal this spring, after spending time with the Miami Dolphins.
With the new scan results in place, the Chiefs will avoid placing Delane on injured reserve, saving him from a mandatory four-week absence. Looking ahead, the Chiefs are set to face the Indianapolis Colts in Week 2, then play road games against the Miami Dolphins and Las Vegas Raiders.