Ben Grubbs Cut by Chiefs: Latest Comments and Reaction

The Kansas City Chiefs reportedly released offensive lineman Ben Grubbs on Thursday, using the failed physical designation. 

Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reported the news, and Howard Balzer of KFNS confirmed the roster move.

The Chiefs acquired Grubbs in a trade with the New Orleans Saints last March. He ended up playing in just seven games with the team before suffering a neck injury that landed him on injured reserve in December.

BJ Kissel of the Chiefs' official site passed along comments from the franchise's head athletic trainer, Rick Burkholder, about the decision at the time.

"We've gone four or five weeks here with rehabilitation and he hasn't improved," Burkholder said. "He's going to need at least another month or two to come back from this thing. So with coach (Andy Reid) and (general manager) John (Dorsey), we decided as a group to put him on injured reserve."

Cutting him is a costly move for Kansas City to make. Spotrac noted releasing Grubbs now leaves a $5.2 million dead cap hit for the 2016 season.

The silver lining, as Bleacher Report's Matt Miller pointed out, is a deep free-agent market of interior linemen that should help the team fill the void:

Louis Vasquez, Jahri Evans and Evan Mathis are among the top veteran names still available.

There hasn't been an update on Grubbs' health status since he was placed on IR, but the fact the Chiefs took such a financial hit to let him go doesn't paint a positive picture. If he does declare himself healthy, a short-term deal where he can prove himself again would be the most likely outcome.

Even under that scenario, however, he would probably have to wait until the free-agent frenzy calms down a bit before finding a new home.