It’s the most wonderful time of the year. Optimism is abound. Training camp has arrived. The possibilities for the upcoming season are endless.
Everyone is looking for the next team, the next star, the next answer to a question they’ve had about their favorite team. Storylines are bound to emerge. This is the NFL, after all. The Kansas City Chiefs are no exception to this rule.
The two biggest stories early in Chiefs camp are rookie fifth-round wide receiver Cyrus Allen and undrafted offensive tackle
Kahlil Benson.
Both Allen and Benson are reportedly already taking some reps with quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the starting offense. That’s meaningful. The Chiefs aren’t going to waste reps, even early in camp, with the best quarterback in the game.
How meaningful, though? That’s certainly up for debate.
The truth is, early training camp storylines fizzle out as often as they become something legitimate. Need I remind anyone of wide receiver Justyn Ross? How about cornerbacks Herb Miller and D’Montre Wade? Standing out at this point in camp is objectively a positive development.
It’s not guaranteed to portend future success.
But sometimes it does. I was skeptical of Tyquan Thornton at this point a year ago. He made plays early and often in camp, and it ultimately translated into the regular season. He parlayed his camp breakout into a potential starting role in 2026 on a two-year contract with the Chiefs worth $11 million.
Are Benson and Allen more likely to go the route of Ross, or the path of Thornton? Only time will tell. For now, let’s take a look at how each could fit into the team’s current or future plans.
Kahlil Benson
Benson is a heck of a project. First of all, he’s huge. He has the arm length Kansas City covets at the tackle position, and that’s a heck of a place to start. He’s also received rave reviews from coaches and teammates alike early in camp about his work ethic.
A big, athletic, hard-working offensive tackle? That’s a heck of a starter pack for a potential camp surprise.
This is where I have to pump the brakes on the hype train, at least a little bit. Benson went undrafted for a reason. There were real questions about his profile. Dane Brugler, one of the best NFL Draft analysts in the business, wrote the following about Benson in his pre-draft evaluation:
“Benson has sloppy tendencies that he must continue to address, but his natural size and length — along with his run-game attitude — will give him a chance in a pro camp. His best long-term position is likely inside at guard.”
Maybe Benson can out-perform those pre-draft expectations. But going from undrafted free agent to starting right tackle on a Super Bowl hopeful seems… excessively hopeful? The more likely scenario is the Chiefs like what they’ve seen from Benson and hope he can compete for a starting role as early as 2027 when the team moves on from Jaylon Moore. Such a scenario would still serve as a huge win for the Chiefs. A big piece of the puzzle on nailing late-round draft picks or undrafted free agents is the cap relief such a move can provide.
Benson is signed to a 3-year contract worth a total of $3.1 million. Even his fourth year is a restricted free agent year in which the Chiefs would technically have his exclusive negotiating rights if the front office chooses to do so. Becoming a starter by year two of Benson’s NFL career would provide the Chiefs the kind of relief along the offensive line that could help to offset Creed Humphrey and Trey Smith’s cap hits.
There’s an important distinction between the situation Benson finds himself in and the one Allen is inheriting. In an ideal world, the Chiefs would play the same five offensive linemen for every snap of the 2026 season. That group likely includes Josh Simmons, Kingsley Suamataia, Humphrey, Smith and Moore. The Chiefs only had two starters stay healthy the entire 2025 campaign, but those two each played 98 percent of the offensive snaps. That’s not abnormal in a typical season.
Cyrus Allen
That’s not true at the wide receiver position. Five different receivers played at least 300 snaps for the Chiefs last year. A rotation at the position is an accepted part of life. Different players carve out different roles, and thus playing time is easier to come by for a player like Allen, even if he isn’t installed as a true “starter.”
Allen is the kind of weapon the Chiefs are lacking. His calling card is the ability to win against man coverage, something this offense could desperately use. His best reps historically have come in the slot, but smarter people than I believe he could hold his own as an option outside.
If his early reps prove to be real, Allen could carve out a legitimate role within the offense. It’s unlikely he overtakes Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy or Thornton for playing time, but could he provide the kind of value JuJu Smith-Schuster has provided as a depth option in recent years? I don’t think that’s too much to ask.
A much larger role for Allen is likely to emerge in 2027 when Rice’s contract is up. It’s entirely possible the starting wide receivers next year are Worthy and Thornton with Allen in the slot, assuming this early camp breakout is real.
The Chiefs might have found two under-the-radar solutions to years-long problems. That’s incredibly encouraging news in the early going of training camp. We’ll see if Allen and Benson can keep it up.
For now, sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. Football is back.
What a delight.
