Kansas City Chiefs players will begin to report to training camp on Friday, July 24. Rookies, QBs, and injured players will head to St. Joseph, Missouri, at Missouri Western State University for a three-day head start program. The rest of the team is slated to arrive on Tuesday, July 28. Find the full Chiefs training camp schedule here.

As players begin to arrive, there are some important things to keep an eye on before practice gets fully underway.

Will Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes be fully cleared to return?

The worst-kept secret leading up to training camp is that Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes is expected to be fully cleared to participate in practice. He participated in 7-on-7 team drills during mandatory minicamp. However, Andy Reid held him out of 11-on-11 team drills. The big thing to remember here is that if the Chiefs give Mahomes full clearance, there’s no going back. He’s going to be full throttle as soon as you let him. Do the training staff, doctors, and coaching staff want to open Pandora’s Box immediately, or slow-play it? That remains to be seen, but I wouldn’t bet against his chances of full clearance at this juncture. He has been ahead of schedule every step of the way, and this is the next milestone.

Mansoor Delane’s shoulder and other injured non-rookies?

First-round draft pick Mansoor Delane did not participate in the team’s mandatory minicamp practices after hurting his shoulder at some point in OTAs. The injury was a bit of a mystery, and the team is not required to provide extensive injury reports during OTAs and mandatory minicamp. Andy Reid suggested he would be ready to participate in training camp practices. We’ll find that out soon enough. No matter what, Delane will have something to prove as a top-10 pick.

In addition to rookies and QBs, the Chiefs typically invite injured players to report to training camp on this date. That means WRs Xavier Worthy & Rashee Rice, along with second-year DT Omarr Norman-Lott, are also likely to report. Worthy, of course, underwent surgery to repair a torn shoulder labrum this offseason. Rice had a debridement surgery on his surgically repaired knee this offseason. Norman-Lott is still working his way back from a 2025 ACL injury.

Other players with injuries to monitor:

• LB Wesley Bissainthe
• TE John Michael Gyllenborg
• TE Jake Briningstool
• S Jaden Hicks

Will any of them start on the Active/PUP list or the NFI list? We’ll find out when the team holds its conditioning test.

Where will Peter Woods’ home be on the defensive line?

After the veterans arrive, there will be a three-day acclimation period before the team can hold its first padded practice. That’s when we’ll get a real look at Kansas City Chiefs first-round DT Peter Woods and what he’s capable of. Woods lined up all across the defensive line over the past two seasons at Clemson. All the way from nose tackle out to edge rusher, he’s shown some versatility throughout his college career. Will the Chiefs lean into that versatility on their defensive line, or will he have a succinct home with a singular position on the defensive interior? Knowing Steve Spagnuolo, he probably has a lot planned for Woods.

Does R Mason Thomas get any first-team repetitions opposite George Karlaftis?

The Chiefs’ plans at the edge rusher position this offseason have been troubling to fans. Opposite George Karlaftis, they seem to be hanging their hat on development at a position that they’ve had trouble developing in recent years. There’s a three-way competition between Felix Anudike-Uzomah, Ashton Gillotte, and rookie R Mason Thomas. The latter is a bit of a mystery because he doesn’t necessarily fit the Steve Spagnuolo prototype. Can he provide the juice this team desperately needs off the edge as a rookie? That feels like a tall task, but there’s at least some hype for him going into camp from a coach that knows the team.

Is Jadon Canady a safety, cornerback, or nickel?

Chiefs DBs coach Dave Merritt and DC Steve Spagnuolo both love versatile defensive backs who can do a lot of different things. Canady is capable of playing corner, nickel corner, deep safety, and single-high or half-field coverage shells. Last season at Oregon, he was lockdown in coverage at the nickel position. Kansas City has a need at that spot, but the competition there includes several players, including Kader Kohou, Chris Roland-Wallace, Kevin Knowles, Melvin Smith Jr., and L’Jarius Sneed. It feels like the more Canady can do for the defense, the more likely he’ll be able to contribute quickly.

Will Cyrus Allen or Emmett Johnson secure any first-team repetitions?

The Chiefs didn’t make an offensive pick until Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft, yet it feels like both Cyrus Allen and Emmett Johnson could emerge as right-away contributors. There’s growing hype for Allen, even though it feels like it’s going to take something unforeseen for him to be anything more than WR4 in this offense. There’s room for a player like Allen to gain some ground during training camp, though. As for Johnson, he’s got an opportunity to slot in behind Kenneth Walker III as RB2. He’ll have to beat out Emari Demercado for that role, but there’s no reason why that can’t happen.

Which of the team’s undrafted free agents stand out?

The Chiefs added quite a few undrafted free agents following the 2026 NFL Draft. None of them has more hype at this time than OT Kahlil Benson, who appears to be in the thick of the right tackle battle. He could wind up as a starter or key reserve, but there are several other players to keep an eye on, too.

• WRs Jeff Caldwell and Jacob De Jesus: Receivers competing for wildly different roles.
• RBs E.J. Smith and Jadyn Ott: Running backs who will make their mark on special teams.
• iOLs Josh Thompson and Pete Nygra: Interior offensive linemen who could push bottom-of-the-roster-competition.
• DTs Amari McNeill and Damon Payne: Defensive tackles to watch if ONL ends up on the PUP list.
• DEs VJ Anthony and Anthony Dunn: Edge rushers who could force some tough decisions.
• CBs Bryce Phillips and Zelmar Vedder: Physical cover cornerbacks who tackle, which Dave Merritt and Steve Spagnuolo love.
• Safeties Xavier Nwankpa and DeShon Singleton: The next in a long pipeline of Chiefs UDFA safety talent.