KC Chiefs put in waiver claim on Jerry Tillery

The Kansas City Chiefs were identified as one of eight teams that put in a waiver claim on DL Jerry Tillery.

Jerry Tillery ended up staying in the AFC West, but it won’t be with the Kansas City Chiefs. Despite the Chiefs’ interest and submitted a claim on Tillery, a former player for the Los Angeles Chargers, it was the Las Vegas Raiders who ended up winning the chance to employ Tillery for the second half of the ’22 season.

ESPN reporter Adam Schefter reported that eight teams around the league submitted a waiver claim on Tillery after he was released by the Chargers last Thursday. The move was a surprising one for the Bolts given that Tillery was a former first-round investment, but the fourth-year defensive lineman was at odds with the team’s coaching staff over his playing time. General manager Tom Telesco decided to cut ties rather than try to force a fit.

The Chiefs were among the teams interested in Tillery and that’s not all that surprising given how general manager Brett Veach loves to provide a second home for recent early-round picks—from Reggie Ragland to Cam Erving to Deandre Baker to Mike Hughes to Kadarius Toney.

The Raiders won the rights to Tillery since they have the worst overall record of the teams that showcased an interest. The other teams, per Schefter, were the Detroit Lions, Carolina Panthers, Indianapolis Colts, San Francisco 49ers, New York Jets, and New York Giants.

Tillery had 4.5 sacks last year in his best season with the Chargers in 15 starts. However, he never turned into the sort of disruptor from the interior that the Chargers hoped he would be and he wasn’t an asset in the run game either. The proverbial writing was on the wall when the Chargers went out this offseason and signed Austin Johnson and Sebastian Joseph-Day.

Tillery was the 28th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft and is scheduled to be a free agent next spring.