The Kansas City Chiefs got a welcome addition to their secondary on Thursday, when cornerback Kristian Fulton walked down the hill with his new teammates to the practice field at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph.

It was the first time that Fulton — signed as a free agent from the Los Angeles Chargers in March — had participated in a training camp practice. Fulton began camp on the team’s Active/PUP (physically-unable-to-perform) list with a knee injury.

He only took part in individual drills on Thursday. On Monday, he began working in team periods. These are steps in the right direction for a player who has the potential to be a significant contributor to the Chiefs’ secondary — particularly as an outside corner.

But while Fulton is a very talented player, he also has a lengthy injury history over his five-year career.

So far, he has not logged a complete regular season. He appeared in just six games as a rookie with the Tennessee Titans, followed by 13, 11 and 12 games over the next three seasons. Last season was his best as a pro. playing in 15 matchups with the Chargers. All told, he has missed a total of 27 games — and was placed on the Reserve/Injured list in the 2020, 2021 and 2023 seasons.

Fulton’s history is rife with lower-body injuries. According to Fox Sports, he has suffered hamstring, groin or knee injuries in each year of his career. The knee issue that held him out of almost all of Kansas City’s training camp was from an offseason cleanup surgery. This was likely an arthroscopic procedure. If no major structures were involved, it should not be a long-term problem.

In addition to missing 13 days of training camp practices, Fulton did not play in Saturday’s preseason contest against the Arizona Cardinals. We should expect him to see only limited action in the final two preseason games — depending on how his practice participation is ramped up.

Kansas City is relying on Fulton to be an important piece of the team’s secondary. Since he has spent most of his career playing outside coverage, his availability would open the door for cornerback Trent McDuffie to rotate into the slot, where he earned first-team All-Pro honors in 2023.

So for Fulton, availability will be the key to his success in 2025. He possesses the physical tools and talent to be a major contributor — and his recent return to practice gives him a good start as he prepares to build upon the best season of his career.