The Departed: Jeremy Maclin Sidelined Sunday

Jeremy Maclin suffered a concussion in the Chiefs’ loss to the Vikings in Week 6, leaving the game in the fourth quarter after hitting his head hard on the turf.

According to Blair Kerkhoff of the Kansas City Star, Chiefs trainer Rick Burkholder said that Maclin had passed the concussion test by Friday of Week 7, but the team held him out as a precautionary measure.

“There’s a lot of layers to this thing, and we felt as a group it was best to hold him,” Burkholder said, according to Kerkhoff. “That’s what we do as a medical staff in the National Football League. We’re charged with protecting these players and along with coach (Andy) Reid, Jeremy and our docs, we made a decision to hold him.”

Before the injury, Maclin was on pace to set career-highs in targets, catches and receiving yards. Through six games, Maclin has been targeted 56 times and caught 39 passes for 531 yards and one touchdown.

Here are some updates from the rest of the Eagles’ offseason departures.

LeSean McCoy earned a B- grade in the Bills’ loss to the Jaguars in London, writes Tyler Dunne of the Buffalo News.

It was boom or bust for LeSean McCoy. Granted, this injury-riddled offensive line is to blame, too – McCoy was met in the backfield immediately at times. But on Sunday, the Bills’ starting back had six runs of zero or negative yardage.

He managed to bounce outside into open space just enough to finish with 68 yards on 18 attempts, but this is the player the Bills knew they were getting in the offseason. He’ll break free for 15 when you least expect it, but also get wrapped up for a loss of 3 or 4 that puts you behind the sticks.

Todd Gurley has emerged as a legitimate stud in St. Louis, but for Nick Foles and the Rams to make the playoffs, they will need more than Gurley on the offensive end, writes ESPN’s Nick Wagoner.

The Rams sit last in the league in passing yards per game (177.7); since Gurley became the starter, they’ve thrown for 475 yards and he alone has run for 433. Kenny Britt‘s 224 receiving yards lead the team, a season total less than Cincinnati’s A.J. Green‘s 227 receiving yards in Week 3 against Baltimore.

From week to week, it has been difficult to predict who is going to be on his game, which makes it hard for Foles to know whom to trust and even more difficult for offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti to identify where to center his game plan aside from Gurley.

But with Gurley emerging as a bona fide star, it’s safe to assume that opposing defenses are going to start loading up the box to stop him and daring Foles and the Rams’ anemic passing game to beat them.

Todd Herremans and Trent Cole haven’t exactly had the impact on the Colts that they were hoping f0r, writes the Indianapolis Star’s Zak Keefer.

The 33-year-old rush linebacker the Colts handed a $16 million contract to in March? Trent Cole doesn’t have a sack all season.

The 33-year-old left guard the team signed to shore up the interior of its offensive line? Todd Herremans was benched after two games.

It’s [Anthony] Castonzo, it’s [Andrew] Luck — stalwarts of this team, this year and for many more to come — off to the worst starts of their career. It’s [Andre] Johnson, it’s Cole, it’s Herremans — the talent the Colts lured to town last spring that was supposed to help this group crest the playoff mountain. Problem is they’re the ones most guilty for halting the climb.

Before the Seahawks topped the 49ers on Thursday night, Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times wrote that Cary Williams was still figuring out how to adjust to Seattle’s coverage techniques.

Much has been made of Williams having to adjust to Seattle’s step-kick technique in the secondary,which calls for patience at the line. [Seattle defensive backs coach Kris] Richard said this might have been a game where Williams might have gotten stuck at times in old habits from his years with the Eagles and Ravens.

“Yeah, there was a couple of times out there to where there was situations to where the technique wasn’t used in the fashion that we prefer,” Richard said. “But ultimately, he was able to recapture and come back to who we are. Ultimately, when it comes down to it, we just need to be in lead position. He understands that.

“So again, a great learning example for us right there. A learning situation. It’s happened to every corner who’s been here. We talk about it each and every single day, and we know that we need to be on top.”

Steelers cornerback William Gay suffered a shoulder injury against Kansas City, which put Brandon Boykin on the field, writes the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Ed Bouchette.

[Steelers head coach Mike] Tomlin mentioned new injuries to only two players after Sunday’s game, both cornerbacks. Antwon Blake left to be observed for a possible concussion, but cleared those tests and returned to play. William Gay left late in the game with a shoulder injury and did not return.

“We’ll evaluate him,” Tomlin said of Gay.

With Blake out, Brandon Boykin played in the nickel defense on the inside and made one nice play on a pass. When Gay left, Ross Cockrell moved into his spot.