The Kansas City Chiefs are set to kick off training camp in just a few weeks, and with the annual trek to St. Joseph nearly here, we're examining every position group on the roster heading into camp.
We'll continue with the defensive line, where the Chiefs currently employ 14 players. Let's take a look at each, separated by defensive tackles and defensive ends. Many of these players possess the versatility to play both inside and outside, but for the sake of this breakdown, each player will be grouped by his primary role.
Defensive Tackles
Let's start with the Chiefs' two returning major contributors at defensive tackle last season in Chris Jones and Mike Pennel. The rest of the Chiefs' defensive tackles are then listed alphabetically.
Chris Jones
A future Pro Football Hall of Famer, Jones amassed another stellar season in 2024 with 74 pressures in just 15 games. That total ranked sixth in the NFL and second among defensive linemen, trailing only the Broncos' Zach Allen (who played in 16 games) by one pressure.
Jones was the anchor of a defense that ranked second in the NFL in scoring prior to Week 18 (when the starters didn't play against Denver), and since the beginning of the 2023 season, Kansas City has yielded more than 30 points in just one of Jones' 38 games played.
Additionally, Jones – whose 72 sacks since 2018 rank fifth among all players – was ranked as the top defensive tackle in the NFL earlier this summer by PFF (for the second year in a row).
Jones has been an integral cornerstone of the Chiefs' run to three world championships in six seasons, and now entering his ninth year as a professional, he'll have an opportunity to build on his already immense legacy in Kansas City.
Mike Pennel
The 33-year-old Pennel, who re-signed with the Chiefs this offseason, returns for his third-consecutive season in Kansas City and his fifth overall when including his first stint with the Chiefs from 2019-20. Pennel appeared in all 17 games last year (with seven starts), logging a career-most three sacks. His 320 defensive snaps ranked third among defensive tackles on the team behind only Chris Jones and Tershawn Wharton.
A stout run-defender, Pennel was graded as the Chiefs' top defensive tackle against the run last season by Pro Football Focus. Additionally, among interior linemen with at least 150 run-defense snaps (a pool of 99 players), Pennel ranked 13th in the NFL against the run last season according to PFF's metrics.
Overall, Pennel was a significant contributor to a Chiefs' defense that ranked fourth in the league in scoring last season.
Coziah Izzard
An undrafted free agent signee from Penn State, the 6-foot-2, 298-pound Izzard recorded 78 tackles, 17.5 tackles-for-loss, nine sacks and two forced fumbles in 51 career games (with seven starts) over his five seasons with the Nittany Lions.
His 4.85 40-yard dash (which took place at his pro day) would have ranked second among all defensive tackles at the NFL Scouting Combine, and his 10-yard split (at 1.56) would have ranked first. Additionally, his 33.5-inch vertical jump would have ranked fourth. Those are all indicators of an explosive athlete.
Fabien Lovett
Lovett, who signed a "Reserve/Futures" deal in February, spent last season on the Chiefs' practice squad after signing with Kansas City as an undrafted free agent. He didn't appear in a game last year.
Prior to joining the Chiefs, the 6-foot-3, 316-pound Lovett appeared in 54 games (31 starts) over six seasons between Mississippi State (2018-19) and Florida State (2020-23). He was a team captain in 2023 for the Seminoles, serving as "an important cog on the defensive line" according to The Athletic's Dane Brugler, who projected Lovett as a fifth or sixth-round pick in his pre-draft guide.
Here's more from Brugler:
"Lovett is stout at contact with the God-given length and power to continue getting better as a pass rusher. He has a scheme-versatile skill set and projects as a rotational interior lineman."
Omarr Norman-Lott
The No. 63 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Norman-Lott recorded the top pass-rush win rate (12.6%) and win percentage (18.9%) of any interior defensive lineman in the FBS last season.
He tallied 27 pressures on his 139 pass-rush snaps in 2024, finishing second on the Volunteers in pressures despite ranking 20th on the team in defensive snaps.
Additionally, the folks at PFF had Norman-Lott as the fourth-best interior defensive tackle in this year's class behind only Mason Graham, Walter Nolen and Kenneth Grant.
PFF described Norman-Lott as an "explosive and powerful 3-technique" with "impressive upper-body strength to bench press linemen back." They compared him to Green Bay Packers' defensive tackle Kenny Clark in their draft guide.
Jerry Tillery
The 28-year-old Tillery, who signed with the Chiefs as a free agent this offseason, appeared in all 17 games (with 11 starts) for Minnesota last year, recording 17 pressures, three quarterback hits and a forced fumble. His 467 defensive snaps ranked fourth among defensive linemen on the team.
A first-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, Tillery spent the first three seasons of his career (and a portion of his fourth) with the Los Angeles Chargers before joining the Las Vegas Raiders midway through the 2022 campaign.
He appeared in 54 games (with 29 starts) for the Chargers, recording 33 quarterback hits and 10.5 sacks in that time. His tenure with Los Angeles came to an end when the Chargers waived him in November of the 2022 season, but the Raiders quickly claimed his services and rewarded him with a new contract following the year.
In total, Tillery appeared in 25 games for the Raiders (with 10 starts) between the 2022 and 2023 seasons, and following a brief departure, he's now back in the AFC West yet again.
Marlon Tuipulotu
A sixth-round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2021, Tuipulotu signed with the Chiefs following training camp and went on to appear in two games for Kansas City. He then re-signed with the Chiefs in late March.
It was only two years ago that Tuipulotu, whose brother – Tuli – plays for the Chargers, tallied 14 appearances (and recorded two sacks) for the Eagles in 2023. Additionally, his 232 defensive snaps in 2022 ranked fifth on the team among defensive linemen.
Overall, the 26-year-old Tuipulotu has logged 30 career appearances (with 2 starts) over the last four seasons.
Defensive Ends
Next, this breakdown of the Chiefs' defensive ends begins with last year's starters in George Karlaftis and Mike Danna before proceeding alphabetically.
George Karlaftis
A rising star on the Chiefs' defensive front, Karlaftis recorded 61 pressures, 28 quarterback hits and a team-most eight sacks while leading all Kansas City defensive linemen in snaps (831) last season. His 61 pressures trailed only Chris Jones for the most on the team.
Since Week 12 of the 2022 season, Karlaftis' 24 sacks rank 11th among all players. He was one of the standouts of the offseason training program, and now entering his fourth year as a professional, he has a chance to emerge as an elite pass-rusher in 2025.
Mike Danna
Danna, who completed his fifth season with the Chiefs in 2024, tallied 22 pressures, eight quarterback hits, 3.5 sacks and two forced fumbles in 13 games last season. The 27-year-old pass-rusher dealt with some injuries that limited his production, but he's only a year removed from setting career-bests in pressures (41), quarterback hits (13) and sacks (6.5) in 2023.
A former fifth-round pick back in 2020, Danna has recorded 20.5 sacks in 72 career games with Kansas City. He'll aim to recapture the success he enjoyed in 2023 this upcoming season.
Felix Anudike-Uzomah
The Chiefs' first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, Anudike-Uzomah appeared in all 17 games for Kansas City last season, logging 332 snaps. He ended the season with 14 pressures, six tackles-for-loss, seven quarterback hits, and 2.5 sacks.
Prior to joining the Chiefs, Anudike-Uzomah was the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year in 2022 after recording 11 tackles-for-loss and 8.5 sacks for K-State. He was immensely productive over his final two seasons for the Wildcats, racking up 25.5 tackles-for-loss, 19.5 sacks and eight forced fumbles in 27 games. He recorded at least eight sacks and 10 tackles-for-loss in each of those years while leading the FBS in forced fumbles in 2021.
Ashton Gillotte
The No. 66 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Gillotte racked up 39.5 tackles-for-loss and 25.5 sacks in 50 career games at Louisville, ranking in the top six in school history in each category.
His top statistical season took place in 2023, when he tallied 14.5 tackles-for-loss, three forced fumbles and led the ACC with 11 sacks. In terms of "pressures created," however, Gillotte was actually more productive in 2024 (60 pressures created) than in 2023 (58 pressures created).
Additionally, Senior Director of Player Personnel Mike Bradway lauded Gillotte's motor during draft weekend:
"This kid plays 100 miles-per-hour," Bradway said. "He's everything you want in a football player."
Malik Herring
Another example of a former undrafted free agent who earned himself a role on the squad, Herring – who tore his ACL at the Senior Bowl in 2021 – has appeared in 26 games for Kansas City over the last three seasons following his return to the field. He played in 12 games last season, recording eight pressures on 96 pass-rush snaps.
His impressive story of resilience is a testament to both his work ethic and the foresight of the Chiefs' front office, who saw Herring's talent despite his injury during the pre-draft process. Herring will have a chance to write another chapter in that story with a strong camp this summer.
Charles Omenihu
Omenihu, who re-signed with the Chiefs in March, enters his third season in Kansas City after recording 12 pressures, one sack and one forced fumble in six games last year. He also added three tackles-for-loss and a sack in three postseason games.
Omenihu recorded 29 pressures and seven sacks the season prior (in just 11 games) before suffering a torn ACL in the AFC Championship Game that delayed his season-debut in 2024 until Week 13.
Now healthy and more than a year removed from his ACL injury, the 27-year-old Omenihu returns to Kansas City as one of the league's better pass-rushers.
Janarius Robinson
The Chiefs signed Robinson, a former fourth-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings in 2021, as a free agent this offseason. He appeared in 10 games (with one start) for the Las Vegas Raiders last season, logging five pressures, two quarterback hits and a half-sack.
Injuries limited Robinson's ability to get on the field early in his career, but he managed to record his first regular-season experience in 2023, tallying two quarterback hits and a sack in six games (with two starts) for the Raiders.
Prior to getting drafted, the 6-foot-5, 263-pound Robinson was a three-year starter at Florida State. He racked up 20.5 tackles-for-loss, eight sacks, three passes defensed and two forced fumbles during his time with the Seminoles, leading the team in sacks as a senior.
A long player with 35-inch arms, the 25-year-old Robinson will now have an opportunity to utilize his physical gifts as a member of the Chiefs.
The Bottom Line
The Chiefs retained nine defensive linemen heading into Week 1 last season, but they've kept as many as 10 in recent years.
It's worth mentioning that the majority of last year's group is back for this season, too. Among the 11 players to record a snap along Kansas City's defensive line in 2024, eight are back for the upcoming campaign.
Two of the players who departed are significant, however, in defensive tackles Tershawn Wharton and Derrick Nnadi. Wharton recorded 33 pressures across 667 defensive snaps last year, which ranked third among Chiefs defensive linemen. Nnadi, meanwhile, manned an unheralded role in terms of stats over the years, but he appeared in 115 games (with 87 starts) during his seven seasons in Kansas City. Both roles will need to be replaced.
In terms of how many (and which) players will make the squad out of camp, one decision the Chiefs' front office and coaching staff will need to make is how they want this group to be subdivided. Traditionally, the Chiefs have retained between five and six defensive ends and four defensive tackles. Last year, specifically, Kansas City kept five defensive ends and four tackles as part of its nine-man defensive front.
Karlaftis, Danna, Omenihu, Anudike-Uzomah and Gillotte are all expected to be significant contributors in 2025 at defensive end, leaving potentially one spot for Malik Herring and Janarius Robinson. That battle will be one to watch in camp.
At defensive tackle, it's reasonable to pencil in Chris Jones, Mike Pennel, Jerry Tillery and Omarr Norman-Lott as the Chiefs' four primary contributors, but we'll see what Marlon Tuipulotu, Fabien Lovett and Coziah Izzard can do in camp. Injuries are common in the trenches, and even if those three don't make the initial 53-man roster, a spot on the practice squad could prove valuable in the long run, too.
