The past few years, Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid had drifted away from bringing rookies and quarterbacks into training camp a few days early, reasoning that such a veteran team coming off deep playoff runs could do without it.
After all, for a decade, the Chiefs had made at least the wild-card round. Many of those seasons ended in February.
But the Chiefs collapsed last season, finishing a dismal 6-11 while losing quarterback Patrick Mahomes to a major knee injury. There were significant roster issues on both sides of the ball, depth problems at important positions that became exacerbated when injuries happened to other players, and it all meant an end to the season far earlier than anyone in Kansas City had expected.
So, with the team in need of a reset — among other reasons — Reid opted to bring his quarterbacks and rookies, along with a few other players coming off injuries, back to Missouri Western State University for a few days of work before the full squad arrives.
“I didn’t like not doing it last year after I got done with it, to be honest with you,” Reid said of the three-day crash course, which continued through heat indexes topping triple digits Sunday. “It’s a good thing for the quarterbacks, good thing for the rookies coming in. We do have more numbers (of rookies) this year, so it allows us to get more reps.
“I think,” Reid added, “that will benefit us.”
It couldn’t hurt.
Start with the quarterbacks: Mahomes was cleared this past week to fully participate in training camp after undergoing surgery in December to repair torn knee ligaments. And while Reid insisted this week that the two-time MVP would have no limitations, there is nevertheless a certain comfort that comes with getting some reps without a full team flying around him.
“You just have to build that confidence back,” Mahomes said, “and I’m glad I get to do that from Day 1 of training camp. I didn’t want to have to get only a couple of weeks of practice in and then have to go play a game. I wanted to build it up, see how training camp goes as we gradually build, and so I think that’ll help me get back to where I need to be.”
For the next two QBs on the depth chart, there’s the matter of learning the offense.
The Chiefs swung a trade with the Jets to bring in Justin Fields as the veteran backup, in part to have someone capable of winning a couple of games should Mahomes be unable to start Week 1. Their young project QB is Garrett Nussmeier, the once-heralded college star from LSU who fell all the way to the 249th overall pick in the NFL draft last April.
Beyond the quarterbacks, though, is the chance to get some extra work for a rookie class — more than two dozen are in camp — that Kansas City will be leaning upon more heavily than perhaps any other point in Reid’s tenure.
Defensive back Mansoor Delane, the first cornerback taken in the draft, is expected to start Week 1, and he may not be the only first-year player on the field. The Chiefs’ other first-round pick, defensive tackle Peter Woods, could find himself playing alongside perennial Pro Bowl pick Chris Jones, while pass rusher R Mason Thomas will be counted upon to pressure the quarterback.
That makes every extra rep they can get before the veterans arrive invaluable.
“I’m super grateful for the three days (of rookie camp),” Woods said. “I told someone earlier that the veterans, they have a standard for what they want to see from us young guys. Just coming in and being able to have some days to prepare myself to be able to mesh well with the veterans, that means a lot to me. Not everyone gets a chance to do that.”
Not in Kansas City. Not the past few years.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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