The Chiefs’ undrafted class is drawing plenty of attention this summer, and for good reason. Kansas City has a track record of finding real players after the draft - Charvarius Ward, Turk Wharton, Esa Pole and others all came in without hearing their names called and still found ways to matter. This group could follow a similar path, especially with the Chiefs entering the 2026 season as one of the youngest teams in the league and coming off their worst season in a decade.
That offseason churn has opened the door. Trent McDuffie, Jaylen Watson, Bryan Cook and Jawaan Taylor are out of the starting lineup, and the competition across the roster is going to be fierce. With 90 players in camp, though, the question becomes which undrafted rookies have the clearest path to the 53.
Khalil Benson sits at the top of that list. He’s been one of the biggest buzz names all offseason and is in the mix to start at right tackle in 2026.
Right now, Kansas City appears to have a three-man fight there between Jaylon Moore, Esa Pole and Benson. He wasted no time turning heads after joining the team, and leaving him off a Week 1 roster prediction would already feel like a reach.
Xavier Nwankpa is right behind him. The former Iowa safety has made an early impression in camp, and the Chiefs’ safety room gives him a real opening.
Depth at that spot is thin, which makes the path to a roster spot much clearer than it is for most UDFAs. Like Benson, he already looks hard to keep off the team.
After those two, the odds get tougher.
Jeff Caldwell is probably the best-known of the rest, thanks to his athletic profile, but Kansas City’s receiver room is fairly settled. He’ll need a strong camp to force the issue, and the more likely outcome is a practice squad stash that gives him a chance to make a run in 2027.
Omari Evans is in a similar boat, though he may be a step behind Caldwell on the depth chart. He has the kind of versatility that could help him work inside and out, but he’s still chasing Caldwell, Armstrong and Remigio. A practice squad spot looks like the most realistic landing place for him as he tries to build toward 2027.
Damon Payne rounds out the group with another uphill climb. He came into college with major hype as a top-50 player in the nation, and while he didn’t fully match that billing, he was solid late at Michigan.
The Chiefs added heavily to the defensive line this offseason, so Payne faces a tough road. If he can stand out in camp, though, he could push Kansas City to keep five defensive tackles.
Otherwise, he’s probably in the same practice-squad conversation as Caldwell and Evans.
In Other News...
Patrick Mahomes Turned An Awkward Chiefs Camp Moment Into Gold
Training camp usually offers the Chiefs plenty of routine reps and a little bit of August frustration, but one accidental moment from Patrick Mahomes ended up becoming the kind of clip that spreads fast online. During a recent practice, Mahomes threw a pass that hit center Hunter Nourzad in the back of the neck, and the video quickly made the rounds on social media.
Mahomes did what he often does when a lighthearted moment finds him: he leaned into the joke. His response to the viral clip was a humorous meme nodding to a comedy movie, turning an awkward practice sequence into an easy laugh for fans. Nourzad was unharmed, and the whole exchange became another reminder that even in camp, the Chiefs' quarterback can turn a strange moment into a little bit of gold. [Read more 🡒]
Patrick Mahomes Card Drama Has Chiefs Fans Sounding Off
A video making the rounds on social media has Chiefs Kingdom talking, after it appeared to show a man and a boy taking a Patrick Mahomes trading card valued at $15,000 at a card show in Illinois. The clip spread quickly and turned into a fresh flashpoint around one of the NFLs most collectible stars, with fans weighing in as the images ricocheted across the internet.
The catch is that the authenticity of the alleged theft has not been confirmed, even as the debate has only grown louder online. For Chiefs fans, it is another reminder of how Mahomes reach extends well beyond the field, where anything tied to his name can ignite a full-blown reaction before the facts are even settled. [Read more 🡒]
Chiefs Right Tackle Battle Is Already Taking Shape In Camp
The first padded practice of the summer gave the Chiefs a better look at one of their early camp battles, with the right tackle spot drawing most of the attention. Kansas City is sorting through a competition between Jaylon Moore and Kahlil Benson, and the work on the field already offered a clearer picture of how the rotation is unfolding as the pads came on for the first time.
Elsewhere in the session, defensive tackle Peter Woods stood out in drills, while Patrick Mahomes kept things moving during situational 11-on-11 work with several completions. For a camp still in its opening stretch, that mix of competition up front and routine sharpness from the offense is exactly the kind of early texture the Chiefs want to see, even if the tackle decision is still developing. [Read more 🡒]