It appears that there could now be a position battle open for a pretty important spot on special teams when the Kansas City Chiefs kick off their training camp.
After the 2025 NFL Draft, it is clear that the Chiefs feel like they have gotten better in the areas that they have needed to get better at. They addressed the trenches, while also getting Patrick Mahomes another weapon, and filling the need in the second and third levels of the defense at linebacker and cornerback. If there was a need on the Chiefs list going into the draft, they pretty much addressed it.
One need, though, that isn't going to be talked about, and rightfully so, is the need to get better on special teams. You can always get better on special teams, in all phases, but for the Chiefs, kick return stands out a bit. According to Sports Info Solutions, the Chiefs were 17th in the league last year in total kick return yards and 8th in total punt return yards. On the punt return side of things, they are good. On the Kick return side of things, they are fine but could be better.
And, one of the players that the Chiefs just drafted in the 2025 NFL Draft could help with that. All of a sudden, there seems to be a sneaky candidate for kick return alongside Nikko Remigio.
"For sure, for sure," cornerback Nohl Williams said when asked if he could see himself as a returner in the NFL. "Yeah, I talked with the special team's coordinator [Dave Toub] in our Zoom, and he's recognized my skills, he liked how I can naturally catch the ball, and you know, I told him I'm experienced with what I have done on special teams and I just let him know that I could contribute and compete."
At Cal, Williams wasn't only a lockdown corner who led the country in interceptions, he was also their primary kick returner, and he did a pretty good job at that as well. Williams returned 12 kicks for a combined 331 yards and a touchdown, tallying a 27.6-yard average, which isn't too bad.
Whether it be preseason games or even regular season games, we have seen Remigio have some pretty nice returns. But, they need a guy next to him. Right now, we can assume that Carson Steele will battle for that second spot, but don't count out rookie cornerback Nohl Williams.
