Chiefs leap over waiver wire order to trade for Cardinals edge rusher

The Chiefs decided to get ahead of the waiver-wire pack for Cardinals' edge rusher Cam Thomas.

The Kansas City Chiefs have pulled off a late-night trade the day before NFL roster cuts are due with the Arizona Cardinals. Their efforts have earned them the services of edge rusher Cam Thomas in exchange for a reported seventh round pick.

Thomas is a former third-round pick of the Cardinals from the 2022 NFL Draft, a selection of a former regime whose vision for Thomas was clearly not shared entirely by current GM Monti Ossenfort—despite his solid showing this summer.

The move comes as a bit of a surprise for Arizona fans knowing that Thomas was having a bit of a breakout moment this summer after having failed to develop as hoped in his first two seasons in the league. Thomas looked like a player who finally turned the corner this summer in the wake of B.J. Ojulari's injury, but Ossenfort decided to part ways with Thomas anyway.

Last year, Thomas failed to register a single sack in 15 games and 3 starts for the Cardinals after posting 3 in his first NFL season.

As for Thomas' role with the Chiefs, it's clear that K.C. didn't like the way they were entering the season looking thin on the outside. Mike Danna and George Karlaftis are the anchors up front for the Chiefs, but Felix Anudike-Uzomah is next in line for reps and he's looked inconsistent up front as a former first-round pick who still struggles against the run. Truman Jones also showed promise, but that's a big step forward for the second-year Harvard product initially signed as a rookie free agent.

The Chiefs are primarily waiting on Charles Omenihu to re-enter the picture up front at some point this season, but he's still in the midst of a lengthy rehabilitation process coming back from surgery to repair a torn ACL.