River Falls, Wisc. ? Kansas City Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil said he expected offensive tackle John Tait to play in Monday night’s preseason opener against the Green Bay Packers, but whether safety Jerome Woods took the field was uncertain.

Tait sprained his ankle Wednesday covering an interception return in the team’s practice with the Minnesota Vikings. He took part in light workouts Friday and Saturday.

Woods, however, is still trying to recover from a broken leg that caused him to miss the entire 2002 season and has seen limited action in training camp.

“It will be the trainer’s decision and our decision,” Vermeil said. “I would like him to get playing again. He hasn’t played in a football game in a year.”

With Tait expected to play and the emergence of rookies Brett Williams and Jordan Black on the offensive line, Vermeil said the pressure was on fifth-year tackle Willie Jones to keep his spot as the team’s third tackle.

“He has a ways to go,” the coach said. “He has about 10 more pounds off his big rear end. I know he can play but has been very inconsistent. I know he can play in this league, but the time is now. We have been patient enough.”

Jones, a 6-foot-6, 355-pounder from Grambling, has appeared in 18 games with the Chiefs since signing as a free agent in 2001. Vermeil said Jones must prove he could play both tackle positions to be with the team on opening day.

“We’ve invested two years in him,” Vermeil said. “If he is our third tackle, he has to play left then right. If you can’t play left tackle and you are the third tackle, then you can’t be the third tackle.”

Vermeil said he expected the Chiefs starters to play the first quarter and maybe a series into the second Monday night.

Running back Priest Holmes may not see as much action as the rest of the starters, but the coach said he expected Holmes to touch the ball around 50 times in the team’s five preseason games.

“Last year he carried the ball, in four preseason games, 44 times,” he said. “I think he will carry the ball slightly more. Just slightly more because he missed the whole offseason and has not played football. I think that would be good for him.”

Vermeil said Jason Baker would handle the punting duties in the first half against the Packers with Leo Araguz taking over in the second half. He said Baker and Jose Cortez will both kick off.

Notes: Vermeil and a number of Chiefs players who played alongside Marcus Allen left River Falls for Canton, Ohio, to be on hand when Allen and former Chiefs head coach Hank Stram are inducted today into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Will Shields, Tony Richardson, Tony Gonzalez, Jerome Woods, John Browning and Marcus Spears will be in Canton to celebrate Allen’s induction. Chiefs owner and founder Lamar Hunt and president Carl Peterson will also attend.