Lions vs. Chiefs: Darius Slay inactive, Matthew Stafford will play

The Detroit Lions will face off against the Kansas City Chiefs but the Pride will have to do so without Darius Slay and with a banged-up Matthew Stafford.

The undefeated Detroit Lions will put their far from perfect 2-0-1 record on the line this Sunday against the 3-0 Kansas City Chiefs. The high-powered Chiefs, whose offense is averaging 33.7 points per game, likely represent the biggest challenge the Lions will face all season.

And going into this critical battle, two of Detroit’s biggest names were questionable for the contest. Now we know who’s in and whose out. The Lions have named the following players inactive for the game against Kansas City at Ford Field on Sunday …

The official inactive list released by the Lions includes cornerback Darius Slay, wide receiver Danny Amendola, Offensive lineman Beau Benzschawel, running back Paul Perkins, defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand, offensive lineman Oday Aboushi, and defensive tackle Mike Daniels. The biggest names on the inactive list are Slay (hamstring), Amendola (chest), and Daniels (foot).

Slay suffered a hamstring injury during the Lions’ victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on the road last Sunday. The two-time Pro Bowler was limited throughout practices this week and considered a game-time decision. Cornerback Mike Ford is expected to replace Slay in the secondary.

Amendola did not practice on either Wednesday or Thursday but was limited during Friday’s practice session. He’ll be replaced by rookie wide receiver Tom Kennedy and Marvin Hall, both of whom were recently promoted from the practice squad.

Finally, quarterback Matthew Stafford will start against the Chiefs on Sunday. Stafford made a surprising appearance on the Lions’ final injury report on Friday due to a hip issue. He was officially listed as questionable for the game. And both backup quarterbacks Jeff Driskel and the rookie David Blough are active for the contest against Kansas City just in case.