Bengals-Chiefs AFC Championship. Kansas City made 5 moves before Sunday’s game

The Kansas City Chiefs made five moves on Saturday ahead of Sunday’s AFC Championship game against the Cincinnati Bengals at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.

As expected, the Chiefs activated Jody Fortson from the Reserve/Injured (reserve) list to the active roster. The team also promoted two practice squad wide receivers to the active roster for Sunday’s game, Marcus Kemp and Ihmir Smith-Marset. Both will likely be used on special teams; Kemp is considered one of the best players in that unit.

The team also released hybrid running back/wide receiver Jerrion Ealy from the practice squad, filling the spot with running back La’Mical Perine.

Fortson, along with running back Clyde Edwards-Heller, were both scheduled to return Jan 17 from spare/damaged. That opened up a 21-day window where they could both practice with the team and be on the roster. Fortson was listed with an elbow injury on Dec. 23; Edwards-Heller was placed on injured reserve on Nov. 23 with a high ankle sprain.

Edwards-Helaire must now be activated on the roster by Tuesday, February 7 at 3 p.m.

Fortson fills the roster spot left open when the Chiefs waived defensive back (and special teams ace) Chris Lammons on Monday. Both Kemp and Smith-Marsett will automatically return to the practice squad after Sunday’s game.

Perine, a fourth-round pick (120th overall) of the New York Jets in 2020, appeared in 14 games in 2020 and 2021, averaging 3.7 yards per attempt on 72 carries (and two touchdowns) before finishing the 2021 season on injured reserve. . . Released by New York in the 2022 final cut, the 5-foot-11, 216-pound Florida product spent the remainder of the 2022 season on the practice squads of the Philadelphia Eagles and Miami Dolphins.