KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Quarterback Brodie Croyle will miss the
Chiefs' game Sunday against the Chargers with a "deep, deep
bruise" in his lower back, and veteran Damon Huard will start in
his place.
Croyle wasn't able to practice at all this week, coach Herm
Edwards said Friday.
"He threw a little bit but just can't move," he said.
Croyle will not suit up but could be ready next week, Edwards
said. The second-year pro had started the last two games and is
designated as Kansas City's quarterback of the future.
Tyler Thigpen, a rookie claimed off waivers from Minnesota on
Sept. 2, will be the backup. Behind him is 12-year veteran wide
receiver Eddie Kennison, who hasn't been under center since high
school.
Huard, an 11-year veteran, was 163-of-262 for 1,766 yards in the
first nine games, with eight touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He
was lifted for Croyle after getting shaken up in a home game
against Denver on Nov. 11.
"My body feels a lot better than it did then. That's one nice
thing," Huard said. "I feel pretty fresh."
Huard started eight games in place of the injured Trent Green
last year and was 5-3. But he did not perform as well when he
became the starter this season after Green was traded to Miami.
One of his best games this year was a 30-16 victory at San Diego
on Sept. 30, when he passed for 284 yards and two touchdowns, with
two interceptions.
"That was a long time ago," he said. "It's a long season. You
watch tape and hopefully learn from it and move on. But that was a
long time ago, that game."
The Chiefs (4-7) have lost four in a row.
"There's always pressure, especially when your back's to the
wall," Huard said. "We've lost four games in a row as a team.
It's tough. There's a lot of pressure on all of us. You've always
got to believe in yourself and believe that you're going to go out
there and win."
Thigpen, drafted in the seventh round last spring by Minnesota
out of Coastal Carolina, has never appeared in an NFL game. He took
a few practice snaps this week with the first team.
"I got a few in on Wednesday and Thursday," he said. "The
first day I was a little nervous. Then on Thursday I felt a lot
more comfortable running the plays. I feel comfortable if I had to go in there on Sunday."
Croyle caught a knee in the back early in the game last week
against Oakland but managed to finish the game. Although he passed
for more yards at Alabama than former illustrious Crimson Tide
quarterbacks such as Joe Namath and Ken Stabler, he fell to the
third round in the 2006 draft because of a history of injuries. The
Chiefs fear he's going to have the "injury prone" label hung on
him now.
"That's going to be the knock," Edwards said. "People are
going to say that now that he's a little nicked. But it's nothing
he can't recover from. His college years early, he got hurt some.
But his senior year he got through it. Any time you get hurt once
or twice in your career, people say, 'He's injury prone.' But I
don't buy into that. I just think it was a freak accident what happened to him. Got hit in the wrong spot."