According to their sources, Simmons was sitting with his feet up in the offensive meeting room when Reid asked him to put them down. Simmons said he had to sit that way because his back and hips hurt. Reid told him to go see the trainers if he was in pain, the back-and-forth kept going, and Mahomes backed Reid and told Simmons to leave and get treatment. Simmons left the room but stayed in the building, and later told Reid and team leadership he could have handled it better.
What's on the record
Wednesday's injury report listed Simmons as missing practice for "back/not injury related-personal." On Thursday the Chiefs placed him on IR with a bulging, herniated disk in his lower back. Rick Burkholder, the team's vice president of sports medicine and performance, said the personal day was time for Simmons to talk with his family and representation about his rehab, ESPN reported.
The back has bothered him since August. He tried rehab over surgery after several opinions and came back to practice after the Week 5 bye, but the pain lingered. He was inactive for the first five games.
