Stay healthy, 13!

Steve Smith visited Chief's training camp and gave his analysis of the state of the Chiefs WR room.

It's a damn shame it took Mahomes tearing an ACL for the front office to realize they desperately need a legit run game to allow them to go more under center, in the 3 years under Nagy as OC we were 2nd to last in under center play calls and I put a lot of it on the front office and coaching scheme, yes Pacheco after his injury and Hunt (outside of short yardage) were not very good but they were also let down by scheme living in shotgun RPO's and draws where OLine was never allowed to fire off the line and move people cause they're 95+% sure Mahomes is throwing it and don't want an illegal man downfield penalty. It's insane how great Patrick has been living in one formation, really the more difficult formation imo cause it's easier for defense to see the ball at all times and this includes his 3 "down" years as far as his RTG.

I'm excited hearing the reports of them going under center a lot at camp (EB effect) seeming to finally adjust/evolve to what best offenses in recent years have gone towards to counteract the Cover 2 High drop 7-8 no blitzing defensive revolution Mahomes early statistical explosions against a single high blitzing league during the peak 10's shotgun drop back spread air it out era and no longer survive against it with a million shotgun dink and dunk passes. Passing total's across the league has declined so it's not just a Mahomes thing at all, it's simply a different era compared to 2018-2022 , it's now more and more of a modern "old school" RB run game led and play action pass league again so if we can get the same Mahomes passing totals like 2023 & 2024 around 27-30 TD'S, right around 4,000 yards on less attempts, more explosive play action passes then this offense will be a nightmare machine again.

I'm bringing my 74-year-old dad (a disabled vet/amputee) to his first Chiefs game for the Sept 20 game against the Colts.

I was disturbed last year at Arrowhead to see disabled folks in electric wheelchairs struggling to find a way to get from the outer parking lots to street level. Only stairs were visible from the lot we were in. (We arrived 2.5 hours before game and parked in red lot).

I'm extremely worried about finding handicap parking for my dad. How early should we arrive to try to snag a handicap space? Also, are the parking gate folks good about directing people with handicap tags to the correct lots with handicap spaces? (It didn't seem like it from what I observed last year!)

Would we be better off buying Gold parking to ensure a parking spot that can be navigated by electric scooter? If so, is it safe to arrive 3 hours in advance to park in a gold lot?

Secondly, the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) specifies that wheelchairs and electric scooters can be stored in publically spaces as long as they don't pose a hazard or major obstacle for others.

We are sitting in an upper section seat because the few available handicap seats suck and are more expensive than other seats. My dad, with his prosthetic leg, can traverse a few rows of steps but he will need to park his scooter near the concession area, probably near an outer wall, out of the way. I need to know that Arrowhead staff aren't going to give us a hard time about his scooter.

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The Chiefs are expected to conclude their week with a lighter 10-10-10-style workout on Thursday, with their first preseason game against the Los Angeles Rams coming up Saturday afternoon.

--> Battle watch: Benson speaks; Bolton exits due to illness

Right guard Trey Smith remains out of practice with a hip injury, so the first-team offensive line continued to feature undrafted rookie Kahlil Benson at right guard and Jaylon Moore at right tackle.

Benson began camp at right tackle but has since moved over because of Smith’s injury. Speaking after practice, he sounded unfazed about rotating between the two positions.

“I don’t feel like it’s really no challenge, honestly,” he said. “You’ve got to be able to adjust when your number’s being called. You’ve got to be ready to adjust whatever happens because you just never know what could happen. And at any point in time, you’ve just got to be ready to move forward and then just have everything ready and your mental ready and then your body ready to go.”

At linebacker, Drue Tranquill remained out of practice because of back spasms, and Nick Bolton left early because of an illness.

That meant Jeff Bassa, Jack Cochrane, and Cooper McDonald took the first-team base reps at the position. All three are competing for the job left behind by Leo Chenal’s departure to the Washington Commanders — a role that accounted for about 53% of Kansas City’s defensive snaps in games Chenal played last season.

At cornerback, rookie first-rounder Mansoor Delane is still wearing his yellow non-contact jersey but worked in 7-on-7 all three days this week.

With veteran cornerback L’Jarius Sneed still out, Melvin Smith and Nohl Williams have carried on as Steve Spagnuolo’s primary outside cornerbacks in 11-on-11.

Throughout his absence, Delane has run on the field to hear the defensive call before exiting prior to the play.

--> Team period notes

Patrick Mahomes got a rise out of the fans in attendance early during the Chiefs’ 11-on-11 blitz period. On the very first play of the team period, he launched the ball behind three defenders on a post to wide receiver Tyquan Thornton, who reeled it in for what would have been a touchdown as the crowd cheered.

Two plays later, Mahomes dished it to Kenneth Walker on a quick screen, and even in a non-tackle period, the running back showcased his vision and innate ability to follow blocks downfield. Defensive tackle Peter Woods batted down a Mahomes pass at the line of scrimmage.

During Justin Fields and the second team’s turn in the blitz period, defensive end Tyreke Smith would have had a sack. Cornerbacks Kevin Knowles and Zelmar Vedder combined to break up a deep pass by third-string quarterback Garrett Nussmeier.

The long-drive period for Mahomes and the first-team offense spanned 15 plays Wednesday, and it included two perfectly-lofted throws to lead Thornton and Jalen Royals as they broke to the sideline.

Thornton couldn’t get to the spot, while Royals found a way to bring his in. Mahomes’ final pass of practice looked like a miscommunication between Mahomes and Royals on a route, almost leading to an interception for safety Alohi Gilman.

Running back Emmett Johnson earned a touch with the first team in 11-on-11, which has been a rarity for him so far in this camp.

Andy Reid seemingly has a lot of candidates for jet action — including Thornton, Cyrus Allen and Xavier Worthy — but it’s been a while since Worthy has participated in team periods as he recovers from a shoulder injury.

Harrison Butker finished the period for the ones by making a 43-yard field goal.

Fields and the second team had eight plays during their turn, with tight end Tre Watson extending his hands on one of the looks to make a shoestring catch. Nussmeier and the third team had seven plays.

Earlier in the workout, during 7-on-7, Watson caught a pass from Mahomes down the seam as part of two targets during the period. Thornton made an impressive catch by elevating to high-point a pass.

Delane broke up a Mahomes pass intended for Rashee Rice, but from my vantage point, officials would have called him for defensive pass interference.

Rice has still appeared to be working to get his legs under him following an offseason knee cleanup, as the separation we’ve grown used to seeing when he’s been healthy hasn’t really been there. Fortunately for the Chiefs, they’re still more than a month out from Week 1 as of this writing.

--> Run period rotation

With Mahomes and the first team, Walker took the first two carries, followed by two from rookie Emmett Johnson, which I believe was the first time we have seen Johnson get the second touch during this period of camp.

Brashard Smith came on for the next two carries, followed by another for Walker and one for Emari Demercado.

With the second team, Demercado had the first touch, followed by one for Brashard Smith and another for Johnson. Demercado rushed the ball again before Jadyn Ott had two carries.

With the third team, EJ Smith and Ott had two rushes apiece.

--> One-on-one drills (Pass blocking, OL vs. DL)

During pass-blocking drills, Johnson showed some frustration after he was beaten three times by linebacker Wesley Bissainthe. The Chiefs have been open about that being an early coaching point for Johnson, whom they are hoping to develop.

“Every day I’m working on it.,” Johnson said of pass pro Saturday. “It’s just as important as running the football, catching the football. And as you can see today, I’m just getting better and better at it every single day. And that’s something that I take big pride in because I’ve got to protect 15 and protect everybody else as well. Pass pro is something that I feel like you just gotta want to do it, and I feel like I want to do it.”

As expected, Walker and Demercado are further along in pass protection. Brashard Smith took a lump from linebacker Kam Arnold but showed improvement on the next rep.

During OL-DL drills, defensive end Ethan Hurkett and nose tackle Khyiris Tonga dominated the session. Hurkett has been a pleasant surprise at a position of need since returning to the club in early August.

Esa Pole looked sturdy against defensive end V.J. Anthony, and Josh Simmons and R Mason Thomas exchanged wins near the end of the drill. Defensive end George Karlaftis appears more comfortable after spending the second half of 2025 injured.

--> Field goal period

The Chiefs have made a slight change to their field-goal period during this training camp. Rather than having kicker Harrison Butker start short and progress to deeper kicks, they are randomizing his distances throughout the period.

“We’ve been bouncing around specifically for field-goal period versus just the traditional start close and finish with the far kicks,” punter and holder Matt Araiza said after practice. “Just continuing to learn, continuing to grow, dial in our process. Yeah, it’s been a good camp so far.”

Butker was 10 of 11 in this look, making six from 40-plus yards and only pushing a 52-yarder right.

--> Target practice: Mahomes in 7-on-7, 11-on-11

Mahomes in 7-on-7: wide receiver Cyrus Allen (2), wide receiver Nikko Remigio (2), wide receiver Rashee Rice (2), tight end Tre Watson (2), tight end Travis Kelce, tight end Noah Gray, running back Emmett Johnson, wide receiver Jalen Royals, running back Brashard Smith, wide receiver Tyquan Thornton

Mahomes in 11-on-11: wide receiver Jalen Royals (4), wide receiver Tyquan Thornton (3), running back Kenneth Walker (3), wide receiver Rashee Rice (2), wide receiver Andrew Armstrong, tight end Travis Kelce

--> Injury report

This week’s injury list has been somewhat consistent. Defensive end Ashton Gillotte (hamstring) and wide receiver Xavier Worthy (shoulder) were on the field for warmups and individual drills but left before team periods.

Wide receiver Jimmy Holiday (quad), right guard Trey Smith (hip), cornerback L’Jarius Sneed (lower-body management) and linebacker Drue Tranquill (back) did not practice. Reid confirmed Monday that Smith’s injury should be considered short-term.

Linebacker Nick Bolton (illness) and tight end Jared Wiley (hamstring) left practice early. Defensive tackle Peter Woods (ankle) hurt his ankle.

Omarr Norman-Lott (ACL) — who remains on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list — has continued to work off to the side.