His replacement, Julian Battle, was carted off the practice field because of an injury to his Achilles’ tendon. He will have a magnetic resonance imaging exam to determine the extent, but the Chiefs feared an injury of some consequence.

“It’s a blow because he was in the starting position and he was maturing into a good football player,” coach Dick Vermeil said. “He was doing everything right and working very hard, and his focus was outstanding. He was becoming what we thought he was going to become even a year ago. He was on his way. Right now, I’ve got a pit in my stomach. I get upset about it because it might be serious.”

The Chiefs plugged Warfield back into the starting spot he recently vacated, but he may not be a long-term solution because he faces the likelihood of suspension for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy.