Chiefs football notebook

Kansas City Chiefs kicker Ryan Succop (6) practices during training camp on Saturday in River Falls, Wis. Succop figures to compete with recently cut Connor Barth for the starting job this fall.

Kicker spot still up for grabs

When the Kansas City Chiefs released Connor Barth just before the start of training camp, it appeared the competition for kicker was over. The job was rookie Ryan Succop’s.

Not so fast.

Though he will get all the reps in training camp, Succop still has to earn his spot as the Chiefs kicker. Kickers at other teams’ training camps, veterans waiting for another shot, even Barth — they’re all still in the mix if Succop doesn’t perform.

“He’s got competition. His competition is just coming from guys that are out there right now, including Connor,” Chiefs coach Todd Haley said. “Anything can happen.”

Barth played reasonably well for the Chiefs last season, making 10 of 12 field goals in 10 games, but was released three days before training camp. The decision wasn’t based on anything Barth did wrong.

With several rookies still needing to sign, the Chiefs had to make a move to get their roster down to the league-mandated maximum of 80 before the start of training camp. They didn’t want to release anyone they didn’t know much about, so they cut loose Barth, a known quality.

The move also gave the team a better chance to evaluate Succop. The last overall pick in this year’s draft, Succop has a strong leg, but is unproven. Giving him all the reps in practice and in preseason games should give the team ample chance to see if he can handle kicking in the NFL.

“In the preseason, you may only kick one field goal in a game, so in order to get this guy seasoned enough to see if he can do it, we felt this is the best direction to go right now,” Haley said. “We wanted to give this kicker enough reps to see how good he can be.”

Missing players

Haley was reluctant to divulge which players had failed their physicals on Friday, when the team had to run within an assigned time to be cleared for the first practice.

There was no hiding on Saturday.

Guards Mike Goff and Brian Waters, defensive ends Glenn Dorsey and Dion Gales, running back Kolby Smith and defensive tackle Ron Edwards all spent the morning practice out of pads, riding stationary bikes and pushing sleds at the corner of the practice fields. Linebackers Demorrio Williams and Derrick Johnson joined the out-of-pads group in the afternoon after practicing in the morning.

Tackle Damion McIntosh started practice but left early with a leg injury.

Johnson looks good

A quiet offseason was just what running back Larry Johnson needed after a tumultuous 2008 season.

The two-time Pro Bowl running back battled injuries, suspensions and trouble with the law last year. He stayed out of the news during the offseason and has been a model player since Haley took over as coach.

Johnson was sharp in Saturday’s first practice, looking healthy and quick, running in his usual punishing style.

“The way I’ve been taught is to go by what I see and not worry about much else,” Haley said. “From Day 1, Larry Johnson has done everything that’s been asked of him and more a lot of the time. For the first day of camp, it was good to see him in pads, running hard and being the physical back that he’s capable of being. Going by what I see, I’m excited about the player.”

This, that

After all the weightlifting, running and offseason workouts, the players were glad to finally go out and hit someone. Many admitted having butterflies before that first contact, but were ready to go after that. “It’s good to have a headache again,” tight end Brad Cottam said. … Known as a screamer, Haley was relatively calm in his first practice as a head coach. Even with several dropped passes, a problem that’s plagued the Chiefs in the past, Haley kept the tone down. No way will it last. “I wanted to get one under my belt for sure. Probably, once we get two or three days, I’ll start to get comfortable.”