The Chiefs are still deciding what to do at cornerback

When the Kansas City Chiefs lost starting cornerback Jaylen Watson to an ankle injury in the Week 7 victory over the San Francisco 49ers, there was plenty of concern about how the team would replace one of its rising young stars.

Third-year player Nazeeh Johnson stepped into the role in San Francisco — and then started the following matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders. But then he was forced out with a concussion, giving way to another third-year defensive back: Joshua Williams.

"I told Josh to stay ready," Kansas City defensive backs coach Dave Merritt told reporters on Friday. "Your time is going to come. And sure enough, it definitely came in a way that we [didn't expect] it to come. But Josh is one of those young men who works better when you give him more reps in practice."

Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo thought both played well while filling in for Watson — but as always with reserve players, had things to clean up, too.

"I thought there were some really good downs," he recalled on Thursday. "I thought Nazeeh tackled well a couple of times — and then Josh had to go in there. We had the one penalty — so we'd like to get rid of that — but I think both those guys could probably play better; I think they'd tell you that."

Johnson, however, has now been ruled for Monday's game .

Merritt compared developing defensive backs to raising children.

"You have the highs and lows," he observed, "and sometimes they [will] disappoint you. It's disappointing to see the penalties. But yet, you're so happy for the young man when they have success with the interceptions. So [you're] just trying to help them just understand that [they] have to just play within the framework of the defense [that's] called."

It remains to be seen if the Chiefs think they need another player to bolster the secondary — as they did with DeAndre Hopkins for the wide receiver corps. However that plays out, Merritt is grateful for two bright points in the secondary: veteran safety Justin Reid and undrafted rookie free agent cornerback Christian Roland-Wallace.

"Well I what I always see with [Reid] is how he relates with all the other guys back there," said the coach of the veteran. "I think he's a great leader. I mean, he does things out of this building — that a lot of us don't see — for the camaraderie of the back-end guys... That's because he's unselfish. He cares about the team and the guys he plays with — and he's been on the field. He's been one of our aggressive guys."

Roland-Wallace has impressed Merritt by being a quick study.

"You're able to tell Chris verbally what you want without necessarily having to walk through it," revealed Merritt. "He can compute it and understand — and go out and perform it. When you find a young man who's cerebral like that — who's able to understand it not only just through walkthroughs and through reps and practice — you want to try to put that guy out on the field.

"He's going to be able to see things. He's going to play with more instincts [than] a guy that [to whom] you're having to explain every single role [and] every single step. They're not going to be your more instinctive guys. [But] Roland is a very instinctive young man. [We're] happy to have him."

The NFL's trading period ends on Tuesday afternoon. Will the team trade for a veteran — or sign a free agent who is already (or will soon be) on the market? Or will they coach up the guys they already have in-house?

We'll be watching.