Kansas City, Mo. ? Rookie Scott Fujita, a fifth-round draft pick who impressed coaches from the opening day of training camp, will make his first start Sunday when the Kansas City Chiefs play San Diego.

Ironically, Fujita will replace veteran linebacker Lew Bush, who was with the Chargers for seven years before signing with the Chiefs in 2000.

A California native who starred at high school in Ventura and in college at Cal-Berkeley, Fujita said Wednesday he will have about 100 relatives at the game on Sunday.

“I feel ready to go, I’ll tell you that,” he said.

The 6-5, 245-pound Fujita played more than half the game during last week’s victory against the New York Jets.

“Two weeks ago he went in and played a little bit and did pretty well,” said coach Dick Vermeil. “He went in last week and played a lot and did better. That doesn’t mean he won’t be mistake-prone like any young player would be.”

Although Fujita has been quick to absorb Kansas City’s complicated defensive scheme, the Chiefs know they may be asking for trouble by substituting a rookie for an 11-year veteran.

“But we’ve got to grow,” Vermeil said.

Kansas City's Lew Bush tries to grab New York's Curtis Martin (28) during Sunday's game in East Rutherford, N.J. Rookie Scott Fujita will replace Bush at linebacker on Sunday at San Diego.

An honors student, Fujita had already earned undergraduate and graduate degrees at California before becoming eligible for the draft.

“His learning curve is very quick,” Vermeil said. “He’s still not an experienced football player. I’ve coached a lot of very bright guys who were dumb football players. He doesn’t happen to be one of them. But I have. You can’t believe the mistakes they make as bright as they are.”

Unlike some especially smart athletes, Fujita knows how to apply his intelligence, Vermeil said.

“There’s different kinds of intelligence, and the transfer of intelligence. But he is beyond very bright, and he applies it very well under pressure in ball games.”

Asked if the outside linebacker job is Fujita’s to lose, Vermeil would only say, “It depends on how well he plays.”

“I don’t know if he runs that much faster than Lew Bush, to be honest with you,” Vermeil said. “But (Bush) is banged up a little bit and this guy’s healthy.”

Fujita was adopted when he was only a few weeks old by a Japanese-American father. Being a tall Caucasian kid with a Japanese surname frequently caused confusion as he was growing up, and it causes confusion still. He said he’s been receiving mail from Japanese-Americans telling him how proud they are that an athlete of Japanese descent is playing in the NFL.

“You get used to it,” he said with a grin.

He’s made himself a student of the Chiefs’ veteran linebackers such as Bush and Marvcus Patton.

“The more you get to sit back and watch guys like (them), it gets you better week in and work out,” he said. “Even when I wasn’t taking reps, I still had film time. I still had time on the practice field where I could watch those guys play. That gets you better every week.”

Holmes honored: Kansas City running back Priest Holmes was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week for NFL Week 5.

Holmes ran for 152 yards on 23 carries and a touchdown and added nine receptions for 83 yards and a TD, helping Kansas City beat the New York Jets, 29-25, on Sunday. Holmes’ 233 combined yards was the second highest total of his career (277 yards vs. Oakland, Dec. 9, 2001).

Holmes won the game for Kansas City with a goal-line leap in the final minute.

Holmes, the NFL’s defending rushing champion, leads the league in rushing (590), total scrimmage yards (803) and touchdowns (10) after five games. The Player of the Week distinction is the fourth of his career and his third with the Chiefs.

With Trent Green winning one of the AFC Player of the Week Awards in Week 4, these are the first back-to-back honors in Chiefs history.