Chiefs called out for lacking “juice” despite deep pass rush room

The Kansas City Chiefs have already made plenty of moves on the defensive edges this offseason to feel better about their options. Some NFL analysts might disagree, however.

Mason Cameron of Pro Football Focus recently wrote about one final move that every team in the NFL needs to make before the start of a new season, and he believes the Chiefs actually need some "more juice" on the edges.

Cameron at least backs up his point with an idea, which would be for the Chiefs to sign Zadarius Smith in free agency. Interestingly enough, the Chiefs were reportedly interested in Smith at one point in time as a potential acquisition for Steve Spagnuolo's defense, but that was back in 2022.

Since then, the Chiefs have steadily reloaded on the edges and the unit seems to be in good, young hands. Chris Jones is always going to be the heartbeat of the team's pass-rushing attack, but the Chiefs have invested considerable draft assets to bolster the potential around him.

George Karlaftis and Mike Danna are the presumed starters once again heading into the 2025 season, but there's plenty of competition there for reps.

Ashton Gillotte is the newest product as a well-rounded defensive end from Louisville taken at the top of the third round in this year's draft at No. 66 overall (thanks to the L'Jarius Sneed trade with the Tennessee Titans.

Felix Anudike-Uzomah is coming into his third season and should be plenty motivated to showcase what he can do with considerable experience and weight training under his belt at the pro level. The former first-rounder might never turn into a franchise cornerstone on the edges, but there's every reason to anticipate growth toward being a reliable rotational piece.

The Chiefs were wise to bring back Charles Omenihu in free agency after the market was oddly cooled on him following an injury-affected campaign. Omenihu has been a beast in the postseason for the Chiefs with a penchant for making game-altering plays (those strip-sacks!), and Brett Veach got him to return on a one-year deal.

That doesn't even mention other players hoping to hang on to a final roster spot like the newly-signed Janarius Robinson (formerly of the Las Vegas Raiders) and holdover Malik Herring.

In case of injury, it would make sense for the Chiefs to explore another addition, but when healthy, this unit should be deeper than it has been in years with the addition of Gillotte and retention of Omenihu. It's just hard to think that the Chiefs need "more juice" here when they actually have more overall potential up front than last year.