The Kansas City Chiefs did a great job adding more juice to the defensive side of the ball in the NFL draft. They selected Peter Woods and R Mason Thomas to bolster the pass rush juice after the Chiefs struggled to get after the quarterback.
Last season, they were tied for 28th in team sacks (35), showcasing that the approach to get better upfront was an easy area to identify. With this unit vastly improved, there's still a pathway to add another pass rusher.
ESPN's Ben Solak came up with a hypothetical trade for New York Giants edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux. He had KC shipping out a 2027 fourth-round pick in exchange for Thibodeaux.
"In recent drafts, the Chiefs have been dumping picks into edge rusher to find more juice: 2023 first-rounder Felix Anudike-Uzomah, 2025 third-rounder Ashton Gillotte, and 2026 second-rounder R Mason Thomas. Why not add one more dart throw in Thibodeaux, who can fill a designated pass-rush role while Gillotte takes more early-down work?"
Teams can never have enough pass rushers, which is why the idea of Thibodeaux makes sense. Solak also highlighted that the Chiefs have a third-round pick in 2027 due to the Trent McDuffie trade, which gives them even more reason to cough up a fourth for the pass rusher.
Chiefs land Kayvon Thibodeaux in a hypothetical trade
Thibodeaux is going into the final year of his rookie deal, and it seems like he may not have a long-term future in the Big Apple. The Giants have Abdul Carter and Brian Burns leading the charge off the edge, before drafting linebacker Arvell Reese. New York plans to play Reese at linebacker, but he still could be used off the edge from time to time.
That makes Thibodeaux more expendable, and the Chiefs should think about taking a swing on the Oregon product. Back in 2022, he was the fifth overall pick, and although he hasn't lived up to that selection, he would give the Chiefs another pass rusher who could come in on obvious passing downs.
Over 53 career games with the Giants, he has logged 152 total tackles, 31 TFLs, 55 QB hits, 13 pass deflections, and 23.5 sacks. His sack numbers have decreased over the last two seasons, but he still has a double-digit sack season under his belt.
Considering that the Chiefs no longer have Trent McDuffie, Jaylen Watson, and Bryan Cook in the secondary, having pass rushers who can get after the quarterback is that much more important. Acquiring Thibodeaux would provide Kansas City with another defensive lineman in their DL overhaul. It would also put Gillotte in a role as more of a run stopper, where he showed promising signs in 2025.
Every year, the Chiefs have Patrick Mahomes under center means they have a shot at doing something special. That makes it more appealing to make a move for Thibodeaux and continue to improve one of the weaknesses from a season ago.
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