The Kansas City Chiefs got some downright outstanding play from their 2022 rookie class on both sides of the ball last season. The group produced many memorable moments that helped catapult the squad to a Super Bowl victory, setting the stage for a promising future in Western Missouri.
Chiefs defensive end George Karlaftis came on strong late in the 2022 campaign, securing sacks for straight weeks straight as a rookie. He understands the impact of Chris Jones’ holdout as well as anyone else on the Chiefs’ roster and praised his teammates who are in attendance in St. Joseph for stepping up their game while the star pass rusher handles his business.
“Just as a group, we’ve had a lot of guys play a lot of ball, starting with Derrick Nnadi and Mike Danna,” Karlaftis explained. “You know, I’ve played some ball Charles Omenihu [too]. When you have a guy like that [Jones], that’s not here right now, you gotta fill that void as a collective.”
Jones was a game-changer for the defense last season, closing several games with clutch sacks.
“That veteran presence, obviously his accolades and what he’s done speaks for itself,” The second-year sack-master continued. “[He was] one of the best, if not the best defensive player last year, so there is a little bit of a void there. We try to fill it as a collective we have guys that have played a lot of ball kind of be all united.”
The Chiefs haven’t given any indication about the state of their negotiations with Jones since training camp officially started on Sunday, but to hear Karlaftis tell it, Kansas City still has plenty of defensive line talent getting work in at the team’s practices.
