KC Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker ‘attacking’ his rehab but continues to miss practice

The outlook continues to be gloomy for Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker playing in Sunday’s game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

The Chiefs announced Thursday that Butker and defensive end Mike Danna (calf) would not practice, marking a second straight day of missed on-field work for both players.

Butker, who suffered the ankle injury in Week 1, also missed last week’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers. The Chiefs are being cautious with their starting kicker.

Chiefs special teams coordinator Dave Toub said Thursday that Butker is “attacking” the rehabilitation process while working with head athletic trainer Rick Burkholder.

Toub went on to describe what Butker is dealing with.

“The swelling was really bad in his ankle,” Toub said. “It went all the way up, and the blood went all the way down to his toes. It was pretty ugly. They’re getting the swelling out of his foot and he just needs time to get that thing (ankle) healed up.”

Whether Butker returns to practice Friday remains to be seen. But Toub indicated that Butker is the kind of player who could play with limited practice time, if needed.

“Rick has him down there kicking, I mean,” Toub said. “He’s trying to do one-steps (kicks) and stuff like that. Butker is very talented. If he’s close (to full strength), he’s better than a lot of people.”

The Chiefs don’t need to rush Butker’s recovery process. If misses his second straight game, the Chiefs will turn to practice squad kicker Matt Ammendola, who filled in for Butker last week.

Toub expressed confidence in Ammendola’s ability to get the job done if needed.

“He’s being consistent in practice, so we’re happy where he’s at,” Toub said.

Aside from Butker and Danna, the rest of the Chiefs were expected to be on the practice field Thursday.

The Chiefs later in the afternoon released the injury report with official practice designations with no changes from Wednesday.

Wide receiver Mecole Hardman (heel) continued to be limited. The Chiefs listed wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling (hip), left Orlando Brown Jr. (knee), right guard Trey Smith (ankle), wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster (shoulder) and wide receiver Justin Watson (chest) as full participants for a second straight day.

For the Colts, defensive end Yannick Ngakoue (back) did not practice after being limited Thursday.

Indianapolis listed tackle Bernhard Raimann (ankle) and wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. (quad) as limited participants. Defensive tackle DeForest Buckner (hip), linebacker Shaquille Leonard (back), safety Julian Blackmon (shoulder), linebacker Zaire Franklin (shoulder), wide receiver Alec Pierce (concussion) and defensive tackle Grover Stewart (shoulder) practiced fully.