Chiefs Head Into Hotlanta Without Walker III

Week 10 of the NFL season rolls along Sunday and with it are some high-intensity clashes. Kirk Cousins makes his return to the Minnesota Vikings as they travel to take on the Green Bay Packers in a NFC North battle. Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers collide with Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday Night Football in an AFC North clash.

Then there was the matchup of the top two rushers in the league. Kenneth Walker III and the Kansas City Chiefs face off with Bijan Robinson and the Atlanta Falcons. However, that collision won’t take place. We’ll break it down for you, so read on.

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Walker III Out for Kansas City Sunday

It was announced Saturday that Walker III was ruled out for Sunday’s contest with the Falcons. He apparently suffered some groin tightness on Thursday. Meanwhile, that was followed up by a missed practice on Friday. That led to a questionable designation on the injury report when the final one was submitted to the league Friday.

On Saturday morning, coach Andy Reid stated that Walker III would not play Sunday. The decision, coupled with the fact that it would be a short turnaround after the injury to try and play, was made. Kansas City hopes that giving Walker III this week off will allow him to be healthy for next Sunday’s contest against the Cardinals. The Chiefs then have a short turnaround as they travel to Buffalo to face the Bills on Thanksgiving night.

Walker III enters Sunday second in the league with 159 carries for 872 yards and seven scores. In addition, he has 26 receptions for an additional 172 yards and four scores. On the flip side, Robinson has 169 carries for 880 yards and five scores on the ground. Meanwhile, he reeled in 31 passes for 250 yards and a score.

How Will the Chiefs Make Up for Walker III?

Without Walker III in the lineup, obviously, the Chiefs have to pivot when it comes to having success on the ground. Emmett Johnson, a rookie fifth-round pick out of Nebraska, is expected to shoulder most of the load. He has 26 carries for 111 yards and a score on the season. Meanwhile, he has done damage as a receiver. Johnson has 14 receptions for 237 yards and a score in his work this season.

There isn’t much in the way of depth behind Johnson this week. Barring a move or an elevation from the practice squad, the Chiefs have just two other running backs on the roster. There’s Jadyn Ott, who has three carries for 19 yards this season, and Nate Carter, who had nine carries for 60 yards with the Falcons last year. However, Ott is questionable for this contest with a hamstring injury.

Shifting of the Odds?

When the opening lines were posted for this contest, the Chiefs were 4.5-point favorites at most sportsbooks. In addition, they were -205 favorites in the moneyline. Those numbers have narrowed at this point. As of Saturday afternoon, that line has narrowed to -3 at books like Fanatics and BetMGM. Meanwhile, FanDuel was among those still giving 3.5 points to Falcons bettors.

The moneyline has come down some as well. Most sportsbooks had the Chiefs down in the -170 to -175 range. Meanwhile, your best bang for your buck if you were betting an underdog Atlanta squad on the moneyline came at Hard Rock. That book had the Falcons at +155 on the moneyline as of 1 pm ET Saturday.

It’s disappointing that we won’t see the top two rushers in the league squaring off but it’s a sound move from the Chiefs’ perspective. Walker III is an integral part of their offense and they need him healthy. Interconference games, while important, don’t carry the same weight that ones against teams in your own division or conference do. We’ll watch to see what happens with Walker leading into next week.