The Kansas City Chiefs are looking to retool and rebound from a terrible 2025 season. The roster was in need of being revamped, but that process tends to lead to lots of questions as players compete for spots that are now open and teams get a look at their new roster additions. With mandatory minicamp coming up next week, there are a lot of important questions the Chiefs need answered, especially on offense.
Below are the five biggest questions that Chiefs fans should be looking for answers to as news of mandatory minicamp comes out.
5. Do the Chiefs have any promising tight ends behind Travis Kelce?
Travis Kelce is back for another (and likely final) season, and while the Chiefs have several options behind them, there are serious questions about any of them being good enough to warrant being their long-term replacement for Kelce.
Noah Gray is the group's proven veteran, but after signing a sizable contract last offseason, he failed to deliver much last season. Jared Wiley is about out of opportunities to prove he'll live up to his draft slot from a couple of years ago, and if either Jake Briningstool or John Michael Gyllenborg wants to be more than just undrafted players with some hype around them, this is the time to prove it.
4. How is the RB rotation behind Kenneth Walker going to turn out?
The Chiefs made waves this offseason by signing the best free agent running back on the open market when they landed Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker. He'll obviously be KC's feature back, but how things will shape up behind him is much more interesting. Fifth-round draft pick Emmett Johnson is the player most fans are excited about, but how much will he see the field as a rookie?
Andy Reid will lean on a running back that he trusts in pass protection on clear passing downs, and that is likely why Emari Demercado was brought in this offseason. While he doesn't have the same hype around him, there is a high likelihood that he'll be the other back receiving regular snaps early in the season as long as Walker is healthy. There is also second-year back Brashard Smith, who had a lot of buzz last season but now is being treated more as an afterthought. Will Johnson immediately leapfrog Smith, or could his year of experience give Smith the upper hand?
3. How do the quarterbacks not named Patrick Mahomes look?
While there might be more people talking about Patrick Mahomes' health and just how soon he could be ready to start games, the much bigger question during minicamp is how the other quarterbacks look. Justin Fields will definitely be given the first-team reps when Mahomes is out, but how quickly can he pick up Andy Reid's offense? Fields has elite physical tools, but has leaned on those tools heavily in the past as opposed to being a "system" guy. Will Reid try to force Fields into playing his system or fit his system to utilize his tools?
Then there is surprise draft pick Garrett Nussmeier, who was, at one point, seen as a possible early first-round draft pick. Could Nussmeier actually be a better fit to run Andy Reid's traditional offense than Fields? Can the rookie adjust to the NFL fast enough to even be put in a position to prove that this season, or is this basically a redshirt season for him? Chris Oladokun already knows the system, but was clearly not starting caliber. If Nussmeier can't clearly outpace Oladokun early on, then it is doubtful that he poses any kind of threat to Fields' primary backup spot.
2. Do the Chiefs have a starting-caliber right tackle?
After surprising many draft experts and not drafting someone to compete at right tackle, it was assumed that last year's free agent signing, Jaylon Moore, would be the starter this season. However, after OTAs, there has been some buzz that Esa Pole may have earned the right for there to be an open competition between the two. This is a major story to watch during minicamp and moving forward.
There are actually two important questions to answer here that will have a major impact on the Chiefs' season. First, who will start at right tackle between Moore and Pole? Second, is the competition between Moore and Pole a sign that the Chiefs have two starting-caliber right tackle options, or rather a sign that Moore isn't starting-caliber and is being challenged by a replacement-level player? For Patrick Mahomes' sake, let's hope it's the former.
1. Do the Chiefs have any NFL-caliber options available at WR?
Rashee Rice is a knucklehead, is in jail, and is rehabbing from an offseason knee procedure. Xavier Worthy is coming back from shoulder surgery, and that leaves the Chiefs with a ton of questions. Here are just a few of them:
- Will Tyquan Thornton build off his flashes from last season and become a regular and reliable part of the offense?
- Will Jalen Royals take advantage of a wide-open position room and break out after doing absolutely nothing as a rookie?
- Can Cyrus Allen prove that his route running and reliable hands make him an NFL contributor and put him ahead of guys with more physical upside?
- Will any of the undrafted rookies like Jeff Caldwell, Omari Evans, Jacob De Jesus, or Xavier Lloyd be able to earn a roster spot, or will guys like Jason Brownlee, Jimmy Holiday, and Andrew Armstrong fend them off?
- Will the Chiefs be forced to play Nikko Remigio at wideout this year due to a lack of any other options?
The wide receiver position is by far the biggest question on the Chiefs' roster, and they have to be hoping that, during mandatory minicamp, a few of these options step up and show that they can be part of the solution at the position this season.
So what do you think, Chiefs fans? Do you agree these are Kansas City's biggest questions on offense? Do you feel good about how these questions will be answered?
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