KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) Patrick Mahomes began the season with what many viewed as the best collection of offensive talent in the NFL, whether that was at the skill positions or along the offensive line.
That certainly wont be the case on Sunday.
The Chiefs quarterback will be missing Eric Fisher for the foreseeable future after the Pro Bowl left tackle flew to Philadelphia on Monday to undergo surgery on a core muscle injury.
The Chiefs said Fisher hurt his groin in practice late last week, and he lasted just three snaps in Sundays victory over Oakland before spending the rest of the game on the sideline.
Kansas City already is without All-Pro wide receiver Tyreek Hill for at least another month because of a broken collarbone, and top running backs LeSean McCoy (sprained ankle) and Damien Williams (knee bruise) join the cast of Chiefs on the sideline for Sundays home opener against Baltimore.
Not that Mahomes who sprained his ankle Week 1 in Jacksonville appears to be concerned about the prospects of a bunch of backups around him in a matchup of 2-0 teams.
Those guys have worked as hard as anyone to be ready for their opportunity, and you saw that last week, Mahomes said, alluding to the breakout performances by wide receivers Demarcus Robinson and Mecole Hardman. I have the same trust with everybody on this team. I have trust that were going to have those guys ready to play on Sunday.
Its not as if the backups are a bunch of bums, either.
Cam Erving, a first-round pick of the Browns in 2015, filled in admirable at left tackle when Fisher left the game. The Chiefs gave him a nice contract for a backup offensive lineman just for this purpose: He can play just about anywhere up front in the case of an injury.
I thought Cam did a good job against the Raiders, Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. He had a solid game. He started off with a little shaky one there at the beginning but he finished it real well.
Robinson merely caught all six passes thrown his way for a career-best 172 yards and two scores, both coming in a four-touchdown second quarter in Oakland. Hardman, the Chiefs initial pick in Aprils draft, caught four passes for 61 yards and his first career touchdown.
They were so effective along with tight end Travis Kelce that the Chiefs didnt even need much from Sammy Watkins, who had nine catches for 198 yards and three touchdowns in Jacksonville.
But if the Chiefs are confident in their backups along the offensive line and at wide receiver, they may be a little nervous in the backfield.
They signed McCoy a week before the season started in part to address their concerns, and now they could be down their top two running backs.
McCoy worked out a bit on Wednesday while Williams took practice off.
