The Kansas City Chiefs have a clear need at edge rusher heading into the new league year.
The consensus seems to be that they’ll address that need in both free agency and the 2022 NFL draft. With the 2022 NFL Scouting Combine on deck and players preparing to compete in on-field workouts, our friends at Touchdown Wire have released their pre-combine mock draft. In this mock draft, they’ve got a polarizing player landing with Kansas City.
As recently as last week, Purdue DE George Karlaftis was being mocked in the top 15 rather consistently. Now, it seems that some anticipate a bit of a fall for Karlaftis. Here’s a look at what Doug Farrar had to say about his decision to send Karlaftis to the Chiefs.
“While I’m not quite as high on Karlaftis’ ultimate ceiling as a lot of media evaluators may be, there’s also the benefit of landing with the Chiefs in what may be a surprising virtual slide down the boards. I get that some compare him to Ryan Kerrigan because Kerrigan also went to Purdue, but Kerrigan was (in my opinion) quite a bit more explosive off the snap coming out of college. I would liken Karlaftis to Kyle Vanden Bosch, who got it done as much with power as with speed, and could disrupt from multiple gaps.”
Listed at 6-4 and 275 pounds, Karlaftis is that prototypical big defensive end that Steve Spagnuolo has liked for his system. He wasn’t overly productive as a senior with 39 tackles, 10 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks on the year. His best season from a production standpoint came as a freshman back in 2019.
Yes, Karlaftis does have the versatility to play up and down the defensive line, but he’s not overly twitchy or bendy as an edge rusher. He typically wins with power and power alone, as opposed to quickness off the edge. That said, he plays with a relentless effort that coaches will love and has plenty of pass-rush moves in his toolkit that can help him win quickly.
The 2022 NFL Scouting Combine could be the difference between a big rise or fall in the first round for Karlaftis. One thing that’s going to be interesting is his arm measurements during weigh-ins. Karlaftis doesn’t seem to have ideal arm length and that shows up on tape at times. His hand-fighting is quite developed, but also necessary because of how he’s forced to win in the trenches.
How would you feel if Karlaftis fell to the Chiefs and they selected him at pick No. 30? Let us know in the comment section down below.
