http://www.kansas.com/sports/story/104294.html1. Larry Johnson -- Their running back has one year remaining on his contract but wants a new deal now. The Chiefs agree he deserves one, but the sides can't agree on the numbers.
Now that Johnson has publicly threatened to hold out if he doesn't receive his new contract, this issue looms as a major distraction.
The Chiefs, anticipating the possibility that Johnson would walk out, offered him in trade in the spring but couldn't find a taker at their price. They also drafted another runner, Kolby Smith of Louisville, who signed Friday.
They have nobody else on their roster capable of providing what Johnson has. But they are hopeful that some combination of veteran Michael Bennett and Smith and perhaps even one of two younger players, Derrick Ross and Marcus O'Keith, can get the job done.
Ross was offensive co-MVP of NFL Europa this spring after rushing for 802 yards in 10 games.
2. Quarterback derby -- For the first time in almost 20 years the Chiefs will go to camp with some doubt about their starting quarterback. The candidates are Brodie Croyle, their third-round draft pick last season, and Damon Huard, the veteran journeyman who filled in nicely last year for the injured Green.
Although the Chiefs have been careful with their public statements on the matter, they would prefer Croyle, 24, emerge victorious. They believe he has far more potential than Huard and his ascension would theoretically allow the Chiefs to solve their quarterback dilemma for the foreseeable future and not just for one year.
Whether it's Croyle or Huard, the Chiefs won't be able to lean on their quarterback as they did Green for so many years.
"It's not going to be on the quarterback this year," Edwards said. "It can't be. It has to be on the whole football team. We're going to have to do some things to help the quarterback no matter who it is. We're going to make it simple for the quarterback and not put him in situations where he can't be successful. We're going to have to play around him with all three phases of the game."
3. Greg Wesley -- A seven-year starting safety, Wesley is as unhappy with his situation as Johnson is with his. He is, for now at least, a backup to Jarrad Page and Bernard Pollard and would like a trade.
The Chiefs have a willing trade partner for Wesley in the Denver Broncos. The teams have agreed on terms of draft-choice compensation, but the Chiefs have yet to sign off on the deal in fear of sending him to a division rival.
In most cases, that's reason enough not to make a deal. In this case, it's not. Page and Pollard don't need Wesley's looming presence. The Chiefs have capable safety reserves in Jon McGraw and Chad Williams and will probably release Wesley and his $2.7 million base salary, anyway.
In that case, the Broncos would get him for nothing.
4. Dwayne Bowe -- His agents are the team of Ethan Lock, Eric Metz and Vance Malinovic. The last time they represented a Chiefs' first-round draft pick, John Tait was their client. The result was a most acrimonious contract negotiation, even for the Chiefs.
Don't count on Bowe being in camp on time.
