The Kansas City Chiefs may be shifting plans for one of their defensive backs, as he’s expected to return from injury in Week 4 against the Las Vegas Raiders.

Chamarri Conner is trending toward appearing in his first game of 2026. The former 2023 fourth-round pick had a chance to be in a better situation this season, during a contract year. You might recall that he stepped into a full-time starting role in 2025 after primarily being a nickel defender during the 2024 NFL season.

Conner continued to play about 20% of his snaps at slot corner in 2025, even though he was starting as a deep safety in the team’s base defensive personnel.

Versatility worked against Chamarri Conner in Kansas City

The Chiefs’ defensive coaching staff is known for its penchant for versatile players in the secondary. In Conner’s case, however, that versatility was a bit of a negative. He tended to struggle more in one-on-one matchups with receivers. His lack of success as a coverage defender pushed him back toward a pure safety role this offseason.

The Chiefs had Conner moving to play only safety, not slot, during training camp. They made that change because of the competition behind him. Kader Kohou, Jadon Canady, Chris Roland-Wallace, and L’Jarius Sneed were all competing for opportunities to earn those slot snaps. It looked like they didn’t need to rely on Conner in that situation, and he could focus solely on mastering a single defensive role.

Unfortunately for Conner, he banged his knee during training camp. He hasn’t practiced or played in a game since the season began, missing the first three weeks of the 2026 NFL season. He looks likely to return in Week 4 against the Raiders, so long as he doesn’t suffer a setback before Sunday’s game. With his return imminent, there’s been some new talk regarding his role. The Chiefs might already be pivoting from their offseason plans for Conner, per Steve Spagnuolo.

Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo says Chamarri Conner may not just play in one spot in his return

Speaking to media members ahead of practice on Thursday, Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo dropped a bit of a grenade regarding Conner’s role. Spagnuolo said he’s not certain the team is still in a spot where it will play Conner only at safety.

“Well, we were on a course to kind of keep Chamarri (Conner) in one spot,” Spagnuolo said. “I don’t know if we’re still there now or not. Listen, both Jaden (Hicks) and Alohi (Gilman) have done an admirable job. They would have liked to have some plays back in the Miami game. Obviously, on those deep throws, and the one that we could have caught. But Chamarri, listen, I think I’ve said this before, but it seems like every year he’s been here and we’ve done cut-ups at the end of the season, and we’re looking through the film, 27 keeps showing up, making plays. So, hopefully we can get him back there doing that.”

Part of that seems to have to do with the fact that other safeties, like Jaden Hicks and Alohi Gilman, have done a good job filling in while Conner has been sidelined.

“I think he’s a really good tackler and a good football player, and you know we’ll fit him in there whether it’s at safety or nickel in certain packages,” Spagnuolo said. “And I like having him on the field, and I’m hoping we get him for this game.”

What’s clear about Spagnuolo’s thinking is that he wants to put Conner in the best position to make the game-changing plays he says show up on tape. The problem is that those plays have been few and far between at nickel corner.

Per PFF, 391 of Conner’s 1,111 total snaps in 2025 came in the slot. He was one of the team’s least effective coverage defenders regardless of where he lined up. Conner allowed 56 receptions on 68 targets, averaging 11.5 yards per reception, and a 114.6 passer rating when targeted.

Is Conner the answer for the Chiefs at nickel?

Speaking to reporters earlier this offseason, Conner said he’s more than comfortable playing safety and was excited to play in that spot. At the same time, it’s clear he has a team-centric mentality.

“Oh, I’m very comfortable playing safety,” Conner said in early August. “It’s exciting to be in one spot. I’m always ready to do whatever the team needs, but I’m excited for this year. I’m excited for this season.”

Spagnuolo will have to figure out what’s best for this secondary. That includes deciding whether putting Conner back in the slot is the right move, given how things have shaken out around the position so far this season.

L’Jarius Sneed leads the team in slot coverage snaps, with roughly 60 snaps out of the slot through three games. He’s allowed 15 receptions on 18 targets for 126 yards. He hasn’t given up a touchdown, hasn’t recorded an interception, and has allowed a 95.8 passer rating when targeted. He’s also allowed over 2 yards per snap in coverage. Overall, Sneed’s slot play and no other player truly challenging for slot snaps is what has opened the door for this return.

The bottom line is that Kansas City needs improvement at nickel corner, and Conner’s return gives Spags another option. The big concern is whether it’s the right option, and whether the results will be any better than what we’ve seen from Sneed in the slot so far this season.