Reid says Butker will play; McDuffie likely to rest against Bills

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said kicker Harrison Butker is expected to play in Sunday’s game against the Buffalo Bills.

The Chiefs’ sixth-year kicker missed four straight games after injuring his left ankle kicking off in Kansas City’s season-opener against the Arizona Cardinals. Special teams coordinator Dave Toub said Thursday that Butker was back to his full run-up for field goal attempts after making a 54-yarder against the Cardinals with just a one-step procedure.

In Butker’s absence, the Chiefs employed two different kickers for two weeks apiece, trying Matt Ammendola against the Los Angeles Chargers and Indianapolis Colts before struggles led them to Matthew Wright for games against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Las Vegas Raiders.

After defensive backs coach Dave Merritt said Thursday rookie cornerback Trent McDuffie was looking good -- Reid said the team decided it will likely rest McDuffie and hold him out of Sunday’s contest. McDuffie, who practiced Wednesday through Friday, would join safety Bryan Cook (concussion) and veteran cornerback Rashad Fenton (hamstring) among the non-active members of the Chiefs secondary for Sunday’s game.

That leaves the Chiefs with two rookie cornerbacks -- fourth-rounder Joshua Williams and seventh-rounder Jaylen Watson -- alongside L’Jarius Sneed competing against Bills quarterback Josh Allen and their vaunted passing attack.

Reid also said Tershawn Wharton is out due to an ACL injury.