The Kansas City Chiefs will be without defensive lineman Charles Omenihu for the first six games of their 2023 campaign after he was suspended by the NFL for a violation of the league’s personal conduct policy.
Omenihu signed with Kansas City as a free agent in March and was slated to be a key contributor to the Chiefs’ defense as the team looks to defend their newly won Super Bowl LVII title.
NFL.com’s national insider Ian Rapoport reported the news of Omenihu’s suspension on Twitter on Friday afternoon.
NFL: Charles Omenihu of the Kansas City Chiefs is suspended for his team’s first six regular season games of the 2023 season for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy.
He is eligible to participate in all preseason practices and games.— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 4, 2023
Omenihu is still eligible to participate in Kansas City’s three preseason games and training camp practices as the Chiefs gear up for the new season but will be unavailable in the weeks following the regular season kicks off.
His loss is a crushing blow for the team, which is currently dealing with a holdout by veteran pass rusher Chris Jones, who is using his absence from training camp as leverage in negotiations for a contract extension.
It is unclear if Kansas City has any contingency plans to fill the void left by Omenihu in their starting lineup for the regular season. Fans should expect rookie Keondre Coburn and veterans Tershawn Wharton and Derrick Nnadi to be fixtures of the Chiefs’ front four early in the team’s coming campaign, especially if Jones’ holdout continues through the end of August.
