On Friday, the Kansas City Chiefs unofficially opened training camp as quarterbacks, rookies and select veterans arrived at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph.
Head coach Andy Reid began his opening remarks with a rundown of the team’s initial injury situation.
At the start of camp, injured players can be played on the Active/Physically-Unable-to-Perform list (PUP). This gives players time to work back to health before being activated to practice. Players remaining on the list at the end
of camp can be kept on the Reserve/PUP list to start the season — but they are then ruled out for the first four games of the season.
Starting in Week 5, teams have five weeks to open a 21-day practice window to the return to the active roster before the players are moved to season-ending injured reserve.
Per Reid, fans can definitely expect second-year defensive tackle Omarr Norman-Lott to be placed on the PUP list ahead of next week’s practices. Norman-Lott tore his ACL in Week 7 of the 2025 season.
“Norman-Lott most likely will start on PUP,” Reid confirmed. “But he’s making progress. He had the ACL reconstruction, there.”
Of course, Norman-Lott is far from the most famous Chiefs player coming back from a major knee injury. The eyes of the NFL are when star quarterback Patrick Mahomes can retake the field after tearing his ACL and LCL in December.
Mahomes appears set to avoid the PUP list designation to start camp.
“Pat’s doing great with his,” Reid declared. “Right now, he’s got clearance to practice and do all the different periods that we have in this camp. We’ll just take it day by day and see how he does. He’ll have plenty of eyes on him from coaches to trainers to doctors. But right now, he’s been cleared to go ahead and participate fully.”
Late in the offseason, we learned that wide receiver Rashee Rice would be absent from the team both due to a short incarceration and a cleanup surgery on his previously injured knee. Reid also does not expect any limitations on the wideout’s participation.
“Rashee Rice with his knee debridement,” Reid continued, “is doing great. He will go. We’ll keep an eye on him, but he’s cleared to go.”
Rookie cornerback Mansoor Delane was sidelined at the Chiefs’ mandatory minicamp in June with what was later revealed to be a shoulder injury. Reid hopes that the sixth overall selection from April’s draft is on the verge of being cleared.
“Delane is having his final physical, right now,” the coach revealed. “So, he’s right in the process of that but is doing well there.”
Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed returns to the Chiefs after two seasons spent with the Tennessee Titans. In his previous tenure with the Chiefs, the team was very cautious with Sneed’s practice reps while managing multiple recurring injuries. Expect more of the same in Sneed’s second stint in Kansas City.
“LJ Sneed,” remarked Reid, “We always kept an eye on him with his knee. We’ll just take him slowly and gradually get him back in the mix there was we go. We’re looking forward to getting him back on the field.”
One deep roster player that Chiefs fans may not see any time soon is undrafted rookie tight end John Michael Gyllenborg, a Kansas City native and Rockhurst graduate. Gyllenborg was not seen on the field throughout the offseason program. Reid described the issue as a knee sprain.
“Gyllenborg,” he stated, “he’s still working through the knee sprain he had. They’re doing some other evaluations on him. We’ll just see for this camp. Most likely, he won’t get much work.”
If Gyllenborg is sidelined due to pre-exiting injury from college, he is likely heading to the team’s Acitve/Non-Football-Injury (NFI) list.
Overall, Reid is pleased with the squad’s initial health.
“Other than that,” he predicted, “I think everybody’s in a pretty good position to roll. Really, Norman-Lott’s the main one. Big guys with ACLs — it takes a little bit of time to get them back and fully strengthened up and ready to go.”
