The Kansas City Chiefs’ defensive line looks very different without Chris Jones in training camp. The All-Pro tackle’s holdout continues, and with the first preseason game less than two weeks away, Kansas City’s depth up front will be something to watch moving forward.
A player with more eyes on him in Jones’ absence is defensive tackle Tershawn Wharton who is almost fully recovered from an ACL injury that he sustained in Week 5 last season. The versatile lineman made his return to the field for practice recently with hopes of picking up where he left off in 2022. Wharton opened up to reporters about his recovery and desire to participate in a Super Bowl.
“Just seeing the guys come in and see me on the train and tables, they encouraged me to always like [to] keep my head up. And then I like to attack everything, like a pro,” said Wharton. “So attacking it and just seeing my strides when, you know, as the months come along, and being able to do things that I wasn’t able to do. It always made me continue to keep my head up and smile through the process.”
Wharton’s absence from the Chiefs’ run to Super Bowl LVII run was disappointing for him during the injury recovery, but he made it clear that he is using it as motivation for the coming season.
“I’m ready to go. You know, I’m tired of watching. You know, I kind of feel like a cheerleader right now. But it’s coming. It’s coming,” Wharton explained. “I mean, of course, I’ve made it to the Super Bowl with them my rookie year, and we played, we didn’t get the outcome we wanted. I’m happy for them, of course; I know, the training camp that they went through the season ups and down well, and I mean they worked for it, so watching it, I want to go get one. I want to go play in it.”
Wharton entered the league as an undrafted free agent after signing with the Chiefs in 2020. He has five career sacks, 64 tackles, and three forced fumbles heading into the 2023 season.
