Broncos - Chiefs Injuries: RJ Harvey to IR, KC without Mansoor Delane, L’Jarius Sneed

Neither the Broncos nor the Chiefs be anywhere near full strength on Sunday afternoon in the Mile High City.

On Friday RJ Harvey was declared out, and on Saturday we got word that he will be placed on the Injured Reserve.

Now another update from Adam Schefter says both Mansoor Delane and L'Jarius Sneed will be out this week with Sneed going on the IR himself.

That certainly shakes things up and will help Denver in their hopes to win this rematch.

Chiefs Down Two Starters in their Defensive Backfield

Fresh off his best game in over a month, Bo Nix will now face a Chiefs defensive backfield that’s down to starters.

Rookie sensation Mansoor Delane is OUT. That should help Jaylen Waddle finally find his footing if he’s active this week after re-injuring his chest last week.

Delane picked off Nix in Week 1 in the rookie’s first game as an NFL player, but also injured his shoulder in that game and had to go out. Now he’s sidelined in the rematch which Nix and the rest of the Broncos will be happy about considering he’s been playing at a high level this year.

L'Jarius Sneed to the IR

Meanwhile, Sneed has been a veteran leader for Kansas City‘s defense this year and not only will he be out this week but he’s being placed on the IR. He's dealing with a knee injury and will miss at least four games.

Sneed has totaled 32 tackles, 3 passes defended, 2 forced fumbles, and 1 fumble recovery this year. He was all over the field against the Broncos in Week 1 with a season-high 8 tackles in that game.

The Chiefs entered the season minus their two starting cornerbacks from 2025. Now they'll be without two starters in the defensive backfield from this season, too.

How this Helps Bo Nix and Broncos Offense

Nix is coming off his best game in over a month in the win over the Arizona Cardinals last week.

He's looking to keep that momentum going by attacking the middle of the field and with deeper targets, both over 10 and over 20 yards downfield. Thanks to those two injuries, he should have more room to work with this Sunday afternoon.

Waddle is QUESTIONABLE, meaning he's 50-50 to play this week. That could mean a big game loading for Courtland Sutton, who's had a very quiet season. Also, expect Troy Franklin and Marvin Mims to get more looks this week, especially if Waddle can't go.

The Broncos finally got back on track last week and want to keep that rolling in this must-win divisional matchup.

Things are lining up for that to happen, and if Jonah Coleman can run well again, Denver will be in the driver's seat offensively. Running the ball and hitting on some explosive plays are one of the keys for a Broncos win this week.

Unfortunately, they won't have X-factor RJ Harvey.

Harvey to the IR

Harvey was a surprise on the injury report in the middle of the week and it was even more of a surprise when he landed on the IR on Saturday afternoon.

The second-year running back apparently hurt his knee in practice and will now miss at least four games for the Broncos.

That makes Coleman's play even more paramount, and there's little doubt we'll see a heavy dose of J.K. Dobbins as well. The Broncos also announced running Cody Schrader has been elevated to the active roster along with safety Taylor Rapp and offensive lineman Gavin Ortega.

Kansas City (5-1) faces Denver (5-2) at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium on Sunday, Nov. 1 at 2:25 p.m. MT.

The Chiefs are currently favored by 1.5 points after the Broncos were originally favored to start the week by the same 1.5 points.

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Rich Kurtzman was born and raised in Denver Colorado and attended Colorado State University in Fort Collins in the aughts. He's been a professional writer since 2011, covering Colorado State football and men's basketball, as well as the Denver Broncos, for many outlets. Current Denver Broncos work can be found on Mile High Sports. Previous credits include CBS Denver and The USA TODAY Sports Media Group.