Chiefs Stash Brashard Smith on IR, Open Door for UDFA Jaydn Ott
Smith lands on injured reserve with a hamstring injury and will miss at least four games, clearing a path for undrafted rookie Jaydn Ott.
IR for at least four games and barely used — nothing to roster here.
- Smith on IR, out at least four games
- Ruled out Friday with hamstring injury
- Our rank #433 overall, #88 at RB (2026)
- UDFA Jaydn Ott signed off practice squad
- LB Cooper McDonald activated off IR
Kansas City placed running back Brashard Smith on injured reserve, a move that sidelines him for at least the next four games after a hamstring injury forced him out on Friday. To fill the roster spot, the Chiefs promoted undrafted rookie Jaydn Ott from the practice squad to the active roster.
This isn't a seismic fantasy loss. Smith sat at #433 overall and #88 at the position in our rankings, and his 2026 line tells the whole story: one catch for four yards across five games, good for a grand total of 1 PPR point. If you were rostering him, you were doing it on spec and nothing more.
Ott, meanwhile, is the name worth filing away. He went undrafted out of Oklahoma this spring and signed with Kansas City, but he hasn't logged a single regular-season snap yet. The roster bump gets him in the building on game day — it doesn't guarantee touches behind a backfield that still runs through Kansas City's established names.
The Chiefs rounded out the day with a couple of other moves. Linebacker Cooper McDonald was activated off injured reserve; he played in Week 1 before a knee injury shelved him. Wide receiver Justin Watson was elevated from the practice squad on a temporary basis.
Watson doesn't move the needle either. He's unranked, and his most recent sample — 3 catches for 30 yards and 6 PPR points across three games in 2025 — reflects exactly the kind of depth role you don't chase in fantasy. His last five games ran about two fantasy points below his season average, so there's no hidden upside breaking loose here.
Bottom line: Smith can come off your roster in every format. He wasn't producing before the injury, and a four-game IR stint ends any lingering stash case. Keep Ott on a far-back watch list in deep dynasty leagues only — until he actually sees the field, there's no reason to spend an active roster spot on him.
