And that bodes well for the Chargers, . Jersey

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Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Anthony Hitchens suffered a rib contusion in Sunday’s victory over the Denver Broncos Authentic Mitch Morse Jersey , and there’s a serious question about whether he will play this Sunday against the Cleveland Browns.He didn’t participate in practice Wednesday, and he was limited on Thursday.Should he be unable to go, it seems likely that the Chiefs may depend on rookie linebacker Ben Niemann to carry at least some of the load.Niemann — an undrafted free agent out of Iowa — was impressive in preseason and has been dressed for six games this season.Except for a handful of snaps in the last two weeks, all of his playing time has been on special teams.But on Thursday, Chiefs defensive coordinator Bob Sutton expressed confidence in Niemann.Bobsitivity.Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images“Ben did a really good job in preseason,” he said. “That’s obviously when we saw him the most. Every time he’s gone in — whether in a preseason game, practice or whatever — he’s [been] a very reliable, very dependable Youth Chris Conley Jersey , tough-minded guy. He loves to compete. He brings a lot of those attributes that I think are associated with the Iowa program — being tough, aggressive and all-out — and I think that will serve him well. We feel pretty good about Ben.”Chiefs linebacker Reggie Ragland — who would be playing alongside Niemann if Hitchens cannot play — also expressed confidence.“Ben can play,” Ragland said. “He knows the whole system. The coaches have confidence in him — to put him out there — so it doesn’t matter what I think. I just know Ben’s going to go out there and do what he has to do. He has my full support.”Ragland almost bristled in response to a question about Niemann’s work ethic.“Oh, man. Ben is one of the hardest-working people in this building. Period. He does what he has to do. He does everything the coaches ask him to do. And on top of that, he knows the game plan each week. Ben’s a hell of a player, and I’m excited for him to get out there and play if Hitch can’t go.”Photo by David Eulitt/Getty ImagesNiemann would be joining another rookie linebacker that generated a lot of excitement in the preseason but didn’t see much action until recently: Dorian O’Daniel.O’Daniel has been active in every game this season — and like Niemann — had seen the most playing time on special teams, with only a handful of snaps on defense.That changed two weeks ago, when Terrance Smith was injured in the game against the Cincinnati Bengals.The Chiefs had originally planned to start rotating O’Daniel into the defensive lineup more regularly http://www.chiefsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-travis-kelce-jersey , but with Smith’s injury, O’Daniel saw a lot more playing time against the Bengals — and then the Broncos.Sutton said that O’Daniel’s playing time will continue to increase.Photo by Harry How/Getty Images“He’s going to see [more playing time] just like he did the other day when Terrance Smith went down. He’s going to play a lot as we go forward, because we’re down one person here, and we were just starting to expand his role before that injury. We had him in on certain packages. Now he’s going to be in on a lot of the packages.”Sutton added that O’Daniel’s role in the Chiefs defense is a little different than what he played in college.“He has had to come in and learn — kind of like we’ve had other position guys [do] — he had to come in and be an in-the-box player. He was usually out of the box at Clemson — out on the perimeter — and now he has to come in and do all those [other] things.”Sutton — like many Chiefs fans who have watched him play in the last two weeks — had a lot of praise for O’Daniel.“Coverage-wise — with speed and quickness — he’s got a really good skill set,” said Sutton. “I think you’re going to see [him] get better and better. He’s outstanding on the perimeter. He can go out and track you down. He likes doing it, and thinks he can do it, and he’s pretty good at it right now.” They call it home-field advantage for a reason. But an AFC team with a clear home-field disadvantage has become, coincidentally or not Dustin Colquitt Jersey , the conference’s premier road team.The 9-3 Chargers have won five of six road games this year, victorious in all venues except the L.A. Coliseum. Which makes the Chargers 4-3 in the L.A. Metropolitan Area — and 5-0 elsewhere.Wins have come in places like Pittsburgh in prime time and Seattle, tough locales for any road team. And that bodes well for the Chargers, who seem to be locked in as the No. 5 seed, when the playoffs roll around and they could be returning to Pittsburgh, and then hitting the road for places like New England, Kansas City, or Houston.The toughest road test yet comes on Thursday Authentic Justin Houston Jersey , when the Chargers try to break a nine-game losing streak to the Chiefs by beating them in their own building. If the Chargers can pull it off, they’ll need to be taken even more seriously as a team that can go on the road in the playoffs and win, possibly/probably because they never actually play a true home game.Among the other top AFC contenders, the Steelers are 4-1-1 on the road, the Chiefs have a 5-2 road record, the Texans are 4-2 away from home, and the Patriots are 3-3. New England has a 6-0 record at home, the Chiefs are 5-0 Youth Steven Nelson Jersey , the Texans are 5-1, and the Steelers are 3-3.