Injury could wreck Chiefs' season

On the rain-soaked turf of Arrowhead Stadium Sunday, the fortunes of the Kansas City Chiefs and their fans took an enormous blow as quarterback Trent Green lay motionless in the grass from a hit delivered by Cincinnati Bengals defender Robert Geathers.

The hit came on the end of a 5-yard scramble by the 13-year veteran, and it sent the nearly 80,000 Chiefs fans in attendance into a series of boos. The jeers were aimed at the Bengals, Geathers, the referees (who didn't throw a flag on the play) and the general helplessness that comes with seeing your season go down the tubes.

What followed was a surreal moment. Green was immobilized. Not that it may have mattered, it didn't appear that the signal caller could move anyway.

The fans were left wondering. The players were left praying. Was it a concussion or was it a neck injury? The force with which Green's head snapped back and hit the turf after being hit squarely in the chest by Geathers could have left Green with one or both of those injuries.

Green was put onto a stretcher with his arms crossed over his chest. He couldn't even motion to the crowd, a la Mike Utley's thumbs up with the Lions in 1991.

It turns out the injury was termed "head trauma" with an announced return for Green as "doubtful." As if the stretcher with Green on it being wheeled off the field wasn't enough to tell you he probably wouldn't be back. The only doubt left now is whether Green will be able to play again in the near future.

The Bengals were leading 17-3 at the time of the injury. The loss of Green for an offense that had already looked anemic for three quarters of a game was enough to realize that this contest was well out of reach. The only question became "Are the playoff hopes the Chiefs entered the season with out of reach as well?"

Sure, Kansas City is equipped with one of the best running backs in the NFL, but when you have no threat of a passing game, and a suddenly mediocre line that gave up seven sacks to the Bengals, it becomes real easy to stop an offense.

But when a quarterback is taken off the field under a power other than his own, it becomes real easy to lose hope.

The Chiefs were already a team with question marks coming into the year. Could the new coaching regime keep the offensive success of the past five years going? Could Kansas City overcome the loss of Willie Roaf? Could the defense, ranked in the bottom five in the league a season ago, make any improvement?

The last thing Kansas City needed was an injury to the one constant for the team the past five years, quarterback Trent Green.

With the precautions taken nowadays on hits to the head of players, it's possible Green could be back next week. Then again, it's possible Green may not be back on the field ever again.

One thing is certain, the return of Green, or his continuing absence, will make the difference in this team being a playoff contender or a contender for a top-5 pick in next season's draft.

While the health of the individual certainly must (and will) take precedence over a team winning a few games, the Kansas City Chiefs, as a whole, have suffered "head trauma."