The Kansas City Chiefs begin organized team activities on Tuesday.
While the players won’t be putting on pads, they’ll be getting back to team drills. Here are five things to keep an eye on with OTAs about to begin for the Chiefs:
Who won’t show up?
OTAs are voluntary, and some players simply won’t show up. Most of the time, those players have contract-oriented grievances or are in their contract years and don’t want to risk injury until they’ve signed a new deal.
Sometimes missing OTAs has to do with other things. In 2017, Eric Berry, Justin Houston and Marcus Peters missed OTAs for the Chiefs. Coincidentally, none of those players remain with the team just two seasons later. Berry, Houston and Peters both cited personal and family reasons for staying away during OTAs.
So who won’t show up in 2019 for the Chiefs?
I don’t expect Chris Jones to show up unless they’ve made significant progress in extension talks. Unless they have a deal agreed to and the paperwork drawn up and ready for him to sign, expect him to stay away.
Don’t expect Tyreek Hill to be present given his situation. He’s suspended from team activities indefinitely until the child abuse allegations have been resolved.
Another player who could potentially stay away amid an extension grievance is cornerback Kendall Fuller. He’s in a contract season and the Chiefs haven’t publicly acknowledged their desire to extend him.
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Which players are healthy?
Health is always an important thing to look at during OTAs. Several players will likely be held out of practices because of prior injuries. Other players might get dinged up during OTAs and miss practice.
One player currently expected to miss OTAs is tight end Travis Kelce. He’s still recovering from ankle surgery, and while things are on track with his recovery, he isn’t expected to return until training camp.
Undrafted free agents Darius Harris, John Lovett and Felton Davis could all be limited during OTAs. Harris sat out rookie minicamp with a shoulder injury, Lovett is currently dealing with a wrist injury, and Davis is recovering from an Achilles injury.
Will there be any new injuries that have popped up that we don’t yet know about with veteran players? I’d be surprised if there weren’t at least a few.
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How will the defense come together?
There are a lot of ideas out there floating around about what the starting defense could look like, and this will be the first time we get a glimpse of them together on the field. We’ll perhaps find out where everybody lines up during the base defense and sub packages.
There are a lot of moving parts involved with how the defense will come together for the Chiefs. The coaching staff will be working together with the full team for the first time. The expectations and pressure are high for this unit to perform.
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Where do the rookies fit in?
The Chiefs rookie draft class will get an opportunity to get on the field with the veterans for the first time. We’ll get to see exactly where they fit in the grand scheme of the roster.
There are already high expectations for several of the Chiefs rookies, including Mecole Hardman and Juan Thornhill. The words
“Day 1 starter” have already been floated around when talking about both of those players, but their roles remain to be seen.
Additionally, Khalen Saunders, Rashad Fenton, Darwin Thompson and Nick Allegretti are all expected to come in and compete within their respective position groups. This will be the point in offseason program where the coaching staff begins to decide where those players fit in down the line. Will they be purely depth players, or will they get an opportunity to start?
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Key position battles to watch
The true position battles on the roster won’t take place until training camp begins in July. However, we will begin to see the pecking order on the depth chart when OTAs kick off this week. We’ll get answers to a few questions about the roster.
Who will get carries first behind Damien Williams? How will the quarterback repetitions shake out behind Patrick Mahomes? Who will be the starting defensive end across from Frank Clark? Which linebackers will end up as starters for the Chiefs?
There are dozens of scenarios, and we should know the answers soon enough.
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