Preseason games are forgotten the moment the clock expires in the National Football League, but the first scheduled contest for the Kansas City Chiefs for 2026 is going to be quite memorable after all.
The Chiefs host the Los Angeles Rams in Week 1 of the 2026 preseason. While it's important for fringe roster players to get a chance to show what they can do, for the casual viewer, this game's interest is mostly about getting to see some old faces in new uniforms.
The Rams are now employing two of the best Chiefs defenders of the last four years, after having signed corner Jaylen Watson and traded for corner Trent McDuffie. With the departures of both, the Chiefs have been forced to completely remake the secondary as part of an overall youth movement on defense that, hopefully, will lay the foundation for a return to contender status, just as the 2022 draft class did, which included McDuffie and Watson in the first place.
The L.A. Rams' visit to Arrowhead in early August is going to be more meaningful than fans might expect from a preseason game.
The Rams sent four draft picks to the Chiefs in exchange for McDuffie back in early March, including a first-round pick at No. 29 overall. The move set the table for both franchises this offseason. For Los Angeles, it was the cornerstone move of an all-in approach to chase a Super Bowl in Matthew Stafford's career twilight by reinforcing a subpar secondary. For K.C., it was a chance to reshuffle long-term financial constraints while picking up much-needed draft assets for a roster that needed an infusion of young talent at multiple positions.
On the Chiefs' side, the void(s) created by the departures will allow some fresh faces to see what the energy of Arrowhead is like for the first time. Mansoor Delane will take the field for his first professional game as the new leader in the secondary. Other fresh faces added to help replace them include Alohi Gilman, who slots into Bryan Cook's old role at safety; fourth-round pick Jadon Canady, who should compete for the starting slot role; and free-agent signings Kader Kohou and Kaiir Elam.
For McDuffie and Watson, the chance to come back to Arrowhead to start the latest chapters of their respective careers is a neat opening. For fans, it will be a fresh opportunity to say thanks to two pillars of the secondary who helped to deliver multiple championships for Chiefs Kingdom.
Chiefs preseason 2026 schedule:
- Week 1 - vs. L.A. Rams, August 15
- Week 2 - @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers, August 22
- Week 3 - vs. Seattle Seahawks, August 28
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