3 winners and 2 losers from the first week of Chiefs training camp

Training camp for the Kansas City Chiefs is well underway, which means we can now begin to piece together what we're hearing and seeing through the first several days in St. Joseph. Narratives are forming. Plans are being revealed, even as Chiefs coaches continue to experiment with players in new places.

Through the first week of training camp. it felt like a worthwhile endeavor to reflect on the winners and losers in camp so far for the Chiefs.

Winner: Brett Veach

It's important to reserve judgment on any draft class until the dust has settled for a few seasons, but the Chiefs have to be enamored with the earliest returns on their rookie investments.

Josh Simmons is not only healthy but looks every bit the part of a franchise left tackle—the first such glimpses at the position since Eric Fisher was earning Pro Bowl nods. Omarr Norman-Lott is already turning heads in the trenches on defense. The d-line and secondary look as deep and strong as ever with emerging players like Nohl Williams and Ashton Gillotte in the mix.

Even late-round picks are looking like contributors. Jalen Royals looks good in drills. Brashard Smith will carve out a niche. Jeffrey Bassa is an intelligent addition to the second level of the defense.

Even the offseason overall plan looks like a smashing success. The roster is deep, top to bottom, on both sides of the ball. Health risks are paying off. Re-signings feel important. Drama has been minimal this spring and summer.

Another strong showing by Veach is in the cards, and the first week of training camp is proving the Chiefs have one of the best in the business calling the shots.

Winner: Patrick Mahomes

Patrick Mahomes has to be ecstatic through the first week of Chiefs training camp. For all of the reasons we applauded Veach as a winner through the early days of camp, Mahomes is also the big winner for having those players around him.

The Chiefs have given Mahomes more weapons heading into 2025 than he's had since Tyreek Hill was traded a few years ago—and maybe even more plentiful even as Hill's dynamism is missed. Hollywood Brown is healthy and appears to be a very reliable threat. Rashee Rice is picking up from last year's breakout campaign. Xavier Worthy is a developed deep threat that will force defenses to remain vertical.

Up front, Mahomes has to be thrilled with the way Simmons has looked at left tackle. Creed Humphrey and Trey Smith are now locked up for years to come to give him a league-best interior core up front. Even protection on the right side should be improved with the threat of competition from Jaylon Moore for Jawaan Taylor.

Loser: Mike Caliendo

For all the talk about a competition at left guard, the reps aren't playing out that way for Mike Caliendo. Coming into the spring, Andy Reid and company spoke often about giving Kingsley Suamataia and Caliendo every chance to compete for Joe Thuney's old spot. Instead, it's been Suamataia who has owned the starter's role in camp.

All of this could change as camp continues. Perhaps Caliendo will get a sustained stretch with the first-team unit as time goes on. However, it doesn't help that the Chiefs are now trying Caliendo at center, too, as if he's going to instead slot into a versatile backup role. If we're just looking at the first week of training camp, Caliendo has to wonder what happened.

Loser: Elijhah Badger

It feels wrong to say that a roster longshot is a "loser" in training camp. Any rookie free agent is going to face horrible odds to make a team's active roster, and Elijhah Badger is no different with the Kansas City Chiefs. That said, for all of the buzz made around his signing, there have been minimal highlights with Badger's name attached so far.

Badger made some plays that turned heads at the team's rookie minicamp, so the potential is clearly there and the Chiefs have him in camp for a reason. However, there's been little to tout so far in St. Joseph. However, preseason exhibitions are going to be key for players like Badger to stand out on special teams and offense.

Winner: Nazeeh Johnson

If anyone thought that the Chiefs' offseason acquisitions in the secondary might crowd out Nazeeh Johnson this summer, it's clear that Steve Spagnuolo still has a vision for the fourth-year defensive back in this defense—and not just on special teams.

The choice of Nohl Williams in the draft, along with the presence of so many other veterans, made Johnson a popular pick to be on the outside looking in. However, Johnson continues to get reps with the top players in the secondary, even lining up outside at times in camp as the Chiefs tinker with the lineup.

Nothing is guaranteed, of course, and it helps that Kristian Fulton remains on the Physically Unable to Play list to start camp, but Spags has always favored Johnson, and that remains true in 2025.