Chiefs news: Felix Anudike-Uzomah talks Jamaal Charles, KC fandom

Kansas City Chiefs rookie Felix Anudike-Uzomah talked to team reporters about growing up as a fan of the team that drafted him.

The smile on Felix Anudike-Uzomah‘s face says it all.

When speaking to reporters following a day at the Kansas City Chiefs rookie minicamp, Anudike-Uzomah came into his media session with a smile that wouldn’t go away. It was the natural response to questions from the press about being the first-round pick of the team he grew up rooting for.

Just over a week has passed since the Chiefs selected Anudike-Uzomah at No. 31 overall in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. As a big, strong pass rusher from Kansas State with 19.5 sacks over the last two seasons, the Chiefs have all the on-field reasons they need to invest in the pick, but it certainly helps to have the heartwarming storyline of the local kid who makes good stapled to it.

So far, Anudike-Uzomah says things have been “pretty amazing” to be a member of the Chiefs. As he detailed to reporters, he’s been a lifelong Chiefs fan, so he’s retained strong memories of not only the present golden era with Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid, but he can also remember when beating a good Green Bay Packers team in the regular season was the franchise’s Super Bowl in a given season.

Anudike-Uzomah was a running back in his early years, and he wanted to emulate perhaps the most dynamic offensive threat to ever wear a Chiefs uniform. “I was a big Jamaal Charles fan, so I remember I had 25 because I was a running back at the time and I wanted to be like Jamaal.”

During his senior year at Lee’s Summit High School, Anudike-Uzomah took the opportunity to go to the Super Bowl parade to celebrate the Chiefs’ first championship victory in five decades. “It was crazy. I remember Damien Williams. I was in the front row trying to get a high-five from him, trying to get a picture of him. I remember just being a fan. I went with a couple of friends and family and we were camping out, I think, at 4:30 or 5:30 in the morning. It was a crazy experience being a part of that parade.”

Upon seeing his uniform for the first time, Anudike-Uzomah had the same response most of us would. “It was a dream. Sometimes I think to myself, ‘Am I dreaming?’ And I have to pinch myself to make sure I’m not. But now I gotta go to work and put the work in. I still haven’t made the team until I’ve put in the work and impressed the coaches.”

That workmanlike demeanor can’t be shaken even in the most surreal moments. Even as a first-round pick, Anudike-Uzomah knows nothing will be handed to him.

“To start off now, I just want to learn the playbook and basically be present and learn from the guys who have already won a Super Bowl. Then if I have the opportunity to play or start or anything, I’ll gladly appreciate it. But right now I want to focus on learning the playbook and getting tips from the older guys.”

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