KC Chiefs minicamp is here: 24 things to watch, including position battles and injuries

The Kansas City Chiefs three-day mandatory minicamp begins on Tuesday and runs through Thursday. All KC Chiefs players will be in attendance for another round of practices. This is the last series of practices before training camp, which will begin in late July. Read on for what to watch for this week.

By Joel Thorman@JoelThorman Jun 4, 2013, 7:50am CDT

Position battles

1. Inside linebacker, Akeem Jordan vs. Nico Johnson: Jordan is your leader at the moment. I still think Johnson takes the job ... at some point.

2. No. 3 quarterback, Tyler Bray vs. Ricky Stanzi: Any predictions here? I gotta go with Tyler Bray.

3. Guard, Jeff Allen vs. Geoff Schwartz: Donald Stephenson looks like the swing offensive lineman, playing multiple positions. Schwartz could do the same thing. Allen seems to be the leader here at the moment, but we really won't know anything along the lines until the pads come on at training camp.

4. No. 2 Cornerback, Dunta Robinson vs. Sean Smith: Andy Reid said Dunta Robinson would get the first shot at corner and he did. Smith will absolutely factor in though.

5. Safety, Kendrick Lewis vs. Husain Abdullah vs. Quintin Demps vs. Sanders Commings (vs. Dunta Robinson?): Lots of bodies here. I'm as interested as you are in straightening it all out. I'm curious to see if Robinson sees time back there.

6. No. 2 receiver: Jon Baldwin vs. Donnie Avery: Baldwin has looked OK at times; not great at others. Avery had a high ankle sprain.

7. No. 2 tight end: Travis Kelce vs Tony Moeaki: Anthony Fasano and his four-year deal will lead this group. But after that? Kelce has looked sharp this offseason while Moeaki has been hurt. Also, don't forget about Demetrius Harris, the basketball player turned tight end who drew Reid's praises last week.

Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Special teams duties

8. Dexter McCluster holding down the No. 1 punt returner spot.

9. Knile Davis returning kicks: "The size and speed," Reid said when asked about Davis returning kicks, "he's got good vision as a running back. So that position, you want the guys that are willing to hit it up the field. We'll see how it does. Not saying that he's the guy necessarily right now, but he's working at it and we'll see how he does through training camp."

10. Sleeper kick returners: Quintin Demps and Mardy Gilyard.

11. Dustin Colquitt being a huge badass: "I'm not sure I ever had a punter like him as far as the way the ball flies off his foot is just amazing," Chiefs special teams coach Dave Toub said this offseason. "He's a bomber. He can flip the field for you. He's definitely a guy that we're happy to have."

12. Ryan Succop tweaking his technique: "For me, in particular, I work a lot with Kevin [O'Dea] because he's more of the kicking coach and really understands the fundamentals and the mechanics," Succop said. "It's been really a blessing to be able to work with him because he's able to point out things that I didn't realize I was doing wrong."

Photo: @RyanSuccop

Injured Chiefs

13. Jamaal Charles hurt his toe last week but is expected to be fine. If he doesn't show up ... this is going to be a looong seven weeks before training camp.

14. Dexter McCluster hurt his hamstring several weeks ago and has only returned in a limited status. It's unclear what his status is.

15. Tony Moeaki is out this week and the rest of the offseason until camp. He had offseason surgery and has not participated in any OTAs. He could be ready for training camp but it doesn't sound like anyone is confident enough to say he'll definitely be ready for training camp.

16. Donnie Avery had a high ankle sprain but he is now back.

17. Other players have been sick -- Brandon Flowers, Branden Albert and Jon Baldwin -- but nothing serious.

The pistol

18. According to the Chiefs rules, the media can not talk about specific formations (like the pistol) that they see at practice. Most people abide by these rules. Except when Alex Smith ran the pistol in practice and everyone wrote about it and talked about it on the radio and TV. They'll probably tell you these rules are for competitive advantage reasons ... but can anyone imagine a rival coach listening into local radio and being stunned -- shocked! -- that the Chiefs are running the pistol in practice weeks after hiring Chris Ault, the pistol expert? Yeah.

More: Ault once said Alex Smith could be an 'excellent' pistol QB