Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyquan Thornton suffered one of the most gruesome ankle injuries you will ever see during Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Somehow, it took him a few seconds to notice.
Kansas City trailed 19-17 and faced third-and-4 with 3:25 remaining when Patrick Mahomes launched a deep ball down the left sideline. Thornton hauled it in for a 55-yard gain before Raiders safety Treydan Stukes dragged him down from behind and landed across Thornton’s left ankle.
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Thornton held on to the football and initially appeared ready to celebrate the biggest play of the game. Then he tried to stand up, looked down and realized his left foot was pointing in a direction it definitely was not supposed to point.
Seriously, do not watch this video if you have a weak stomach.
WARNING: The video below is graphic.
Adrenaline is a heck of a drug, apparently.
CBS announcers Jim Nantz and J.J. Watt immediately recoiled when they saw the replay.
“Oh, no,” Watt said.
“Oh my goodness. I don’t even want to look at it,” Nantz added.
Those were the appropriate reactions.
Medical personnel placed Thornton’s left leg in an air cast before carting him off the field. The Chiefs ruled Thornton out with an ankle injury but had not announced a more specific diagnosis as of publication.
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The injury was especially cruel because Thornton had finally carved out a role in Kansas City. A Patriots second-round pick in 2022, he joined the Chiefs’ practice squad in November 2024, made the roster in 2025 and re-signed in March after catching 19 passes for 438 yards and three touchdowns last season.
He entered Sunday with 108 receiving yards over the previous two games, then delivered the first 100-yard performance of his NFL career. Thornton caught five passes for 111 yards and two touchdowns before suffering the injury.
The Chiefs were already without Rashee Rice, who exited in the first quarter with a right hamstring injury and did not return. Rice had 190 receiving yards through three games, so Kansas City could now be without two important pieces of its passing attack.
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Thornton’s 55-yard catch set up Kenneth Walker’s go-ahead touchdown on the next play, and Kansas City held on for a 30-27 victory to improve to 4-0.
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Hopefully, Thornton’s injury is somehow less serious than it appeared.
Unfortunately, it looked about as bad as an injury can look.
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