The Biggest Name on the Roadblock: Star NFC Defender Poised to Sign with Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs definitely boast a really good defense, but the Super Bowl made it pretty clear that they could still stand to bolster the unit as a whole.
The question is, what exactly can the Chiefs do, and where are the problem areas?
Well, Kansas City doesn’t have an ideal cap situation heading into the offseason, so it may have difficulty finding impactful answers. Now, the Chiefs can make some roster cuts and move some money around with restructured contracts, but it will still be a tough task.
But there is a name that just surfaced that would fit Kansas City pretty perfectly: Washington Commanders defensive lineman Jonathan Allen.
The Commanders are parting ways with Allen, as they have given him permission to seek a trade after a 2024 campaign in which he missed nine games due to injury.
Allen carries a $22.4 million cap hit for 2025, so he definitely isn’t cheap, but he also isn’t so extravagantly expensive that the Chiefs would have not shot of adding him.
It’s pretty clear that Chris Jones needs some help in the trenches. He wasn’t quite as good this past year, finishing with 37 tackles and five sacks. Yes he still earned Pro Bowl honors and a First-Team All-Pro selection, but it seemed fairly obvious that he showed signs of decline.
Remember: Jones posted back-to-back double-digit sacks campaigns in 2022 and 2023, which included racking up 15.5 in the former season. He is now 30 years old and turns 31 in July, so a dip is naturally coming, and it has probably already begun.
Not that Allen is a spring chicken himself at 30, but he would at least make Jones’ job more palatable on the interior and would also help open more pass-rushing lanes for George Karlaftis.
Heck, Allen is a terrific pass rusher himself, as he made consecutive Pro Bowl appearances in 2021 and 2022 thanks to his ability to get to opposing quarterbacks.
Of course, Kansas City would have to get creative for this to happen. The Chiefs would definitely have to open up some cash, but for a player like Allen, it would be well worth it.
