KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (15-4)
CAMP SITE: Kansas City, Missouri
LAST YEAR: Chiefs beat San Francisco 49ers to win first Super Bowl in 50 years, finally giving Andy Reid chance to hoist Lombardi Trophy for first time as an NFL head coach. QB Patrick Mahomes came back from early ankle injury and dislocated kneecap to have another phenomenal season that earned him 10-year contract extension this summer that could ultimately pay him more than $500 million. WR Tyreek Hill joined TE Travis Kelce, WR Sammy Watkins and RB Damien Williams in forming potent group of playmakers. FS Tyrann Mathieu and DE Frank Clark provided all Chiefs hoped when they acquired them prior to start of 2019 season.
IMPORTANT ADDITIONS: DE Taco Charlton, P Tyler Newsome, TE Ricky Seals-Jones, OL Mike Remmers, CB Antonio Hamilton, RB DeAndre Washington.
IMPORTANT LOSSES: P Dustin Colquitt, CB Kendall Fuller, DE Emmanuel Ogbah, OT Cameron Erving, TE Blake Bell, LB Reggie Ragland, FS Jordan Lucas, DE Terrell Suggs, DT Xavier Williams, CB Morris Claiborne, RB Spencer Ware.
PANDEMIC CHALLENGES: Chiefs typically hold training camp at Missouri Western in St. Joseph, Missouri, where expansive outdoor practice fields, indoor facility and college dining and residence halls are tailor-made for them. But pandemic means they will have camp at training facility in Kansas City, which is still state-of-the-art but doesn’t give Reid same bonding experience he values away from home.
CAMP NEEDS: Good health. Chiefs brought back every important piece from championship-winning roster, and few noteworthy losses were countered by what in most cases were upgrades. That includes draft picks Edwards-Helaire (first round), LB Willie Gay (second round) and OT Lucas Niang (third round). So biggest need is to keep everyone healthy - both in terms of COVID-19 and injuries.
EXPECTATIONS: Win another championship. That is why Chiefs kept band together, and why they spent lavishly to keep Mahomes and DT Chris Jones (four-year, $85 million extension) happy this offseason. Biggest question whether group still has same hunger that led them to Super Bowl last season?
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