Training camp in St. Joseph, Missouri, is where the Chiefs start sorting out the details that can quietly steer a season. The obvious headlines are already there: the tragic news involving Eric Bieniemy’s family, Patrick Mahomes working his way back from major knee surgery, and the usual spotlight on the team’s draft picks as fans and media get their first real look.
But the stuff that often decides how a team actually functions isn’t always the loudest. A few less-talked-about camp battles could end up mattering just as much for Kansas City.
One of the biggest is how often the Chiefs line up under center on offense. That may not sound as dramatic as Mahomes’ health or Kenneth Walker’s role, but it could be a major clue about what this offense wants to become.
The issue isn’t simply whether the Chiefs run the ball more. It’s how they do it.
Too many of their runs over the past couple of seasons came out of the shotgun, with little physical presence and not enough play action to force defenses to hesitate. If Kansas City wants to make life easier for Mahomes, getting under center more would be a clear way to make opponents prepare for more than one thing.
That leads directly into another question: does Andy Reid want to lean heavily on multiple tight end sets, and if so, does he have the bodies to make it work? Reid has used plenty of those looks before, and they would fit naturally if the Chiefs are serious about putting more weight on the run game.
There’s also another path: go under center with three wide receivers and try to force defenses into lighter looks, then let the interior line work against a nickel package. Either way, the formation choices matter because the offense has to find a way to get back on track after slipping over the last couple of years.
The tight end room makes that decision even more complicated. Travis Kelce is likely in his final year and probably shouldn’t be pushed for 90% of the snaps if the Chiefs want him fresh and efficient.
Beyond him, the options are less certain. Noah Gray had a down year last season, Jared Wiley has yet to prove himself in the NFL, and the other names - Jake Briningstool, Tre Watson, and John Michael Gyllenborg - are undrafted players.
On defense, the Chiefs also have a tricky replacement job after losing Leo Chenal’s role. Chenal wasn’t a full-time player, but he filled a very specific hybrid job.
One snap he was functioning as a run-stopping linebacker, and the next he was lined up on the defensive line because of his strength. That kind of usage doesn’t have a clean one-for-one answer on the current roster.
Cooper McDonald looks like the best bet to handle the run-stopping linebacker duties, but asking him to also slide onto the defensive line in those same spots would be a lot. The Chiefs could simply move to a more traditional substitution pattern and bring in a true extra defensive lineman instead.
They also have Jeffrey Bassa, a fifth-round pick from last year who brings more sideline-to-sideline athleticism than Chenal did. Then there’s rookie R.
Mason Thomas, an athletic defensive end who could potentially absorb some of those hybrid linebacker/defensive line snaps. The real question isn’t just who fills the void.
It’s how Steve Spagnuolo chooses to replace it.
The secondary has its own ripple effect, too. Kansas City has added so many cornerbacks that it could change how often the team uses three-safety packages.
The cornerback room now includes Mansoor Delane, Nohl Williams, L'Jarius Sneed, Kristian Fulton, Jadon Canady, and Kader Kohou, with Chris Roland-Wallace, Kaiir Elam, and Kevin Knowles also in the mix for fans who still see upside there. At safety, the Chiefs really only have Alohi Gilman, Jaden Hicks, and Chamarri Conner as true options.
That matters because the Chiefs have often leaned on a third safety in dime looks, usually going with three safeties and three corners. But there’s a case to be made that the team’s fourth-best corner could be a better answer than Chamarri Conner.
Spagnuolo stuck with Conner last season, often in the slot, even when plenty of fans wanted a different look. The same question is back now: does Conner keep getting regular work as a hybrid safety/nickel, or does the deeper cornerback group push him out of the rotation?
None of these questions will grab the same attention as Mahomes, Bieniemy, or the newest draft picks. Still, as camp ramps up, they’re the ones worth tracking closely.
In Other News...
Chiefs May Have Found Another Camp Sleeper Worth Watching
Jacob De Jesus has already made himself hard to ignore in Chiefs camp, even if his path to Kansas City has been anything but ordinary. The undrafted rookie wide receiver came through Modesto Junior College, UNLV and California, where he finished with First-Team All-ACC recognition as an all-purpose player and specialist, and now he is getting a look at a spot where the Chiefs value quickness, versatility and reliability.
For a player trying to stick on the roster, the appeal is obvious. De Jesus can line up as a slot receiver and help in the return game, which gives him a real lane to compete for one of the final receiver jobs, but the battle around him is crowded and every rep matters. If he keeps showing the same kind of usefulness that got him noticed in the first place, Kansas City may have found another camp name worth tracking all the way through August. [Read more 🡒]
Chiefs Fans Wont Like Jawaan Taylors Start In Atlanta
Jawaan Taylors first camp with the Falcons has opened with a familiar concern for Chiefs fans, as the veteran tackle was placed on Atlantas Physically Unable to Play list when the team reported for its 2026 preseason work. Taylor signed a one-year deal after the Falcons lost starting right tackle Kaleb McGary to retirement, and Atlanta has already added veteran tackle Wanya Morris to help shore up the depth chart.
The designation does not automatically mean Taylor is headed for a long absence, but it does put his availability in question at the start of a crucial camp. For Kansas City observers, it is hard not to notice the uneasy echo of Taylors 2025 injury issues with the Chiefs, and Atlanta will now have to wait for him to get cleared before it can see how quickly he fits into a line that already needed reinforcements. [Read more 🡒]
Chiefs Dome Plan Could Bring Kansas City Something Arrowhead Never Could
The Chiefs new domed stadium plan in Wyandotte County is about more than replacing Arrowhead down the road. Set to open in 2031, the project would give Kansas City a venue built for the biggest indoor events, the kind of stage the open-air stadium has never been able to offer. For a franchise that has spent decades selling the atmosphere around Arrowhead, the dome opens a different kind of ambition.
Chiefs president Mark Donovan said the team is already in preliminary discussions with the NFL about hosting Super Bowls in 2033, 2034 and 2035, and the club is also pushing for NCAA Final Fours. Those conversations are still early, but they show how quickly the stadium plans could change Kansas Citys place on the national event map. If the building comes together as planned, the city would no longer just be a football destination on fall Sundays. [Read more 🡒]