NFL Rumors: Chiefs' Harrison Butker Will Have Surgery on Knee Injury; Placed on IR

Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker will have surgery on his left knee to trim his meniscus, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

He will miss at least the next four games after being placed on injured reserve but is expected to be back for the tail end of the regular season and playoffs.

The Chiefs are signing New York Jets kicker Spencer Shrader off the practice squad in the meantime.

Butker will miss road matchups at the Buffalo Bills and Carolina Panthers and home contests against the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers. The earliest Butker can return is Dec. 15 versus the Cleveland Browns.

Butker first appeared on the Chiefs' injury report Thursday after fully taking part in practice the day before. He reportedly turned in a limited session, naturally sounding alarm bells regarding his status.

Unfortunately, he'll be out for at least a month now. It's a tough blow for the Chiefs given how well Butker has performed for them. He's made 215-of-241 career field goals (89.2 percent) with a long of 62, helping Kansas City win three Super Bowls since his arrival in 2017. This year, Butker has made 18-of-20 field goals and 21-of-22 extra points.

Shrader, a rookie, kicked four years at South Florida before transferring to Notre Dame for his final season. He made 43-of-63 field goals (68.3 percent) and 156-of-158 extra points (98.7 percent). Last season, Shrader was 15-of-22 on field goals, including four makes of 50 or more yards (long of 54).

This season, Shrader played one game with the Indianapolis Colts in place of injured Matt Gay, making all three of his extra points in a 29-27 loss to the Houston Texans on Sept. 8. Shrader did not attempt any field goals.

Gay got his job back upon his healthy return, and Shrader landed with the Jets' practice squad on Oct. 30. Eleven days later, he was called into action against the Arizona Cardinals. He was 2-of-2 on field goals from 25 and 44 yards in a 31-6 loss. He was reverted to the practice squad after the game.

The Jets offered Shrader a spot on the active roster, but he decided to leave for Kansas City instead, per ESPN's Rich Cimini.

Shrader is getting thrown into the fire quickly with a road game in a tough environment in Orchard Park, New York. The 8-2 Bills have the best chance to dethrone the 9-0 Chiefs from atop the AFC before the playoffs begin in January. It would have been a tough matchup as is, but Shrader will have a tall task ahead of him.

The good news is that the current forecast calls for a high of 56 degrees, cloudy skies and light winds, so weather shouldn't be much of a factor here.

Kickoff is set for 4:25 p.m. ET on Sunday.