The first week of NFL training camp always brings a familiar buzz, and then the injuries start rolling in. Some are the kind teams can shrug off. Others change a camp in a hurry.
Here’s how five notable setbacks stack up on the panic meter, from minor concern to full-blown alarm.
Kansas City Chiefs rookie wide receiver Cyrus Allen got the best possible news after being carted off the practice field Saturday. Allen, Kansas City’s 2026 fifth-round pick at No. 176 overall, was diagnosed with a shin bruise. ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter called it “a best-case scenario,” and the expectation is that Allen can return soon.
That matters because Allen has been one of the early breakout players in camp. A short absence would still leave him time to keep building toward a real preseason role. The Chiefs have seen this kind of thing before, too; in 2023, tight end Travis Kelce missed just a week after a bone bruise.
Xavier Worthy’s situation carries more weight. The Chiefs wideout’s shoulder is a real point of attention, especially with the offseason shoulder surgery hanging over it. Worthy, the 2024 first-rounder, also missed time last season after colliding with Kelce in Week 1 and finished 2025 with 532 receiving yards and one touchdown.
NFL insider Ian Rapoport said Worthy is “believed to be OK,” but that only goes so far. The only way to really ease the concern is to see him back on the field.
In Carolina, the news is much tougher. Rookie wide receiver Chris Brazzell II is out for the season after the Panthers moved from an initial eight-week timeline on a knee injury to announcing he will undergo season-ending knee surgery. Brazzell, the 2026 third-round pick at No. 83 overall, had been part of a plan that could have opened up more slot work for 2025 Associated Press Offensive Rookie of the Year Tetairoa McMillan.
That loss stings because Brazzell brought size and speed to the table at 6-foot-4, 198 pounds, and his 4.37s 40-yard dash at the scouting combine suggested he could stretch a defense. With defenses already keying on McMillan, Brazzell would have made life harder on everyone else. Now Dave Canales has a month to sort out Plan B.
New Orleans took a major hit when defensive tackle Bryan Bresee was believed to have torn his ACL in practice this week. The Saints’ 2023 first-round pick was a key piece for coordinator Brandon Staley, and his absence pushes the pressure onto a group that has to prove itself quickly.
Rookie Christen Miller, 2025 third-rounder Vernon Broughton and 2024 sixth-round pick Khristian Boyd are next up. Broughton and Boyd combined for 101 snaps last season, while Miller arrives with the most upside from Georgia’s defensive tackle pipeline. The production Bresee provided will be missed, but the bigger issue may be how thin the Saints suddenly look up front.
Buffalo also has a situation worth monitoring after safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson was carted off Saturday with a calf strain. The Bills signed the seven-year veteran in March to a one-year, $3.5M deal after he spent 2025 on three teams.
Gardner-Johnson’s résumé is built on impact plays and edge: 20 career interceptions, a hard-nosed style and leadership the Bills have already noticed. ESPN Bills reporter Alaina Getzenberg wrote, “In limited time with the team,” Gardner-Johnson has been a vocal leader for the unit.
The good news is that he avoided a major setback. The caution is obvious, though: calf strains can open the door to something far worse, including Achilles trouble, so Buffalo will have every reason to be careful.
Then there’s Cincinnati, where defensive end Shemar Stewart has already been knocked off track in what was supposed to be a breakout year. Stewart missed most of his rookie camp because of a contract dispute, had just one sack last season, and now he’s dealing with another delay after hyperextending his knee during practice Wednesday.
The injury looked bad enough that avoiding something worse counts as a relief. Even so, it leaves the Bengals waiting again on their 2025 first-round pick.
The climb was already steep for Stewart. Now it gets steeper.
In Other News...
Bills Secondary Suddenly Has A C.J. Gardner-Johnson Concern
The Bills secondary had already been a point of interest this offseason with C.J. Gardner-Johnson joining the team on a one-year deal, bringing the kind of versatility and edge Buffalo hoped would sharpen the back end of its defense. But his recent exit from a game quickly shifted the conversation from fit and role to simple availability, as trainers and teammates surrounded him after he went down.
Gardner-Johnson was unable to continue and was carted off after an apparent issue with his right foot, leaving Buffalo with an uneasy wait on a player it had just added to help stabilize the secondary. For a defense that is still sorting out new pieces, the sight of a veteran defensive back going down like that is the sort of development the Bills can ill afford this early. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Suddenly Face A C.J. Gardner-Johnson Camp Concern
The Bills got a scare at training camp when safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson went down during a practice drill and had to be helped off the field. It was the kind of moment that can stop a camp session in its tracks, especially when a veteran defensive back is involved, and Buffalo immediately shifted into the cautious mode teams usually reserve for injuries that could alter the shape of a roster conversation.
For now, the early signs are at least somewhat encouraging, with teammates and staff indicating Gardner-Johnson was able to walk afterward and is going through the usual medical steps. Still, the club is waiting for more clarity before saying much more, and the next update will matter for a defense that has been counting on him to settle in quickly during camp. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Secondary Just Got A Scare It Could Not Afford
Training camp already has a way of sorting out the hopeful from the fragile, and Buffalo got a reminder of that when safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson went down during 11-on-11 drills. He suffered a lower-body injury, was helped off the field, and the Bills quickly shifted from practice mode to waiting mode as he was taken in for further evaluation.
The immediate concern was hard to miss: Gardner-Johnson was favoring his right foot and not putting much weight on it before heading to the locker room. Buffalo is now waiting on medical testing to learn how serious the injury is, a situation the secondary can hardly welcome with the season work already underway. [Read more 🡒]