The Chiefs' outside pass rush stinks and multiple factors are to blame

The Kansas City Chiefs are 9-1 and the defending back-to-back Super Bowl champions. Despite dropping their first game to the Buffalo Bills, they remain in the driver's seat for the top seed in the AFC (although they are in a tight race with the Bills and Pittsburgh Steelers) and are one of the top Super Bowl contenders in the NFL. However, one of the things that could threaten K.C.'s attempt to complete the NFL's first-ever three-peat is their glaring lack of an outside pass rush this season.

The Chiefs have one of the best pass rushers in the NFL in defensive tackle Chris Jones. He's an absolute terror on the interior. They also have one of the league's best defensive coordinators in Steve Spagnuolo. His schemes typically keep opposing offenses off balance and he doesn't hesitate to send blitzes to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks. However, Jones and Spagnuolo are helping mask just how awful K.C.'s outside pass rush has been this season.

Sometimes writers like to exaggerate for dramatic effect (or clicks), but when I say that Kansas City's outside pass rush stinks, it is 100% true. The Chiefs were second in sacks in 2023. Their 57 sacks on the season were second only to the Baltimore Ravens. This season, they are tied for 27th in sacks with 19 and are on pace for 32.3 sacks. That would be over a 40% drop in sacks from last year. A big part of that is the abysmal 6 sacks from their edge players through the first 10 games.

Six sacks from edge players in 10 games is pitiful. In fact, there are only two teams in the NFL with worse sack production off the edge. Those teams are the Atlanta Falcons and the Carolina Panthers. That is not the company you want to be in when it comes to outside pass rush. The Falcons only have 10 sacks on the season and the Panthers only have 12. Those are the only teams you will find in the entire NFL with a worse outside pass rush. This is a problem.

George Karlaftis is fine, but he needs help

George Karlaftis has been Kansas City's only decent outside pass rusher this season. He is responsible for 4 of the 6 sacks by KC defensive ends. Pro Football Focus has him with a 66.8 pass-rush grade so far this season. That ranks 47th out of 113 qualifying edge players. They have him with 35 total pressures on 332 pass-rush snaps, good for a 10.5% pressure rate. That's fine, but nothing to write home about. If the Chiefs had someone else giving them similar pressure opposite him then it might be different, but that hasn't been the case.

Mike Danna and Felix Anudike-Uzomah have combined for 2 sacks and 21 total pressures this season. FAU's 60.3 pass rush grade ranks 68th among edge players and Danna's 58.2 ranks 81st. Both players have a pressure rate between 7-8%. That's just not good enough. Danna is solid against the run and FAU has improved against the run in his second season, but neither player can get any kind of regular pressure on opposing quarterbacks off the edge. The Chiefs traded for Cam Thomas earlier this season, but so far he has been an absolute non-factor.

Charles Omenihu will help, but he's not a traditional edge rusher

The Chiefs have designated Charles Omenihu to return from IR, and he has begun practicing in a limited capacity. If he is anywhere near his old self coming off of a major injury, Omenihu could help the team's overall pass rush. However, he wasn't a player who won off the edge even before his injury, and if he's missing any explosion, he definitely won't be applying much outside pressure this season. Instead, Omenihu will help apply pressure on the interior on passing downs next to Chris Jones. That has value, but Tershawn Wharton is already doing that (just not quite at Omenihu's level).

Chiefs fans should still be happy about getting Omenihu back, even if he won't add much to the outside pass rush. If he's just able to exploit interior matchups while Chris Jones draws double teams it will be beneficial to the overall defense and at this point, the Chiefs' pass rush can use all the help it can get. However, they still need some more production off the edge on clear passing downs.

Could Joshua Uche be the answer?

There is one player on KC's roster that could potentially add some pass rush pressure on the outside and that is Joshua Uche who the Chiefs acquired from the New England Patriots before the trade deadline. Uche has a 69.2 PFF pass rush grade this season, which is the highest of K.C.'s edge players, and has a higher pressure rate as well at 12.1% (compared to 10.5% for Karlaftis). The problem is that in three games with the Chiefs, Uche has only played 25 total defensive snaps. He was only on the field for 5 defensive snaps against the Bills, the lowest total since he joined the team.

So if the Chiefs desperately need more pressure off the edge and Uche has the natural tools to win on the outside, why isn't he playing more? The answer could be that Spagnuolo wants his guys to know the system before he trusts them. The answer could be that he doesn't feel Uche has the size/power to keep containment both against the run and/or against quarterbacks that could take off and scramble. We don't know the why, but we do know that Uche hasn't been able to match his playing time or production from when he was in New England.

Spags might not like it, but he may be forced to give Uche more snaps on clear passing downs. Danna and FAU just aren't getting the job done and the Chiefs must find a way to generate more pressure from guys not named Chris Jones. Uche may never be a high-impact player for Kansas City, but he does have an 11.5-sack season as an edge rusher in New England. That's more than Karlaftis' career high. If the Chiefs can turn Uche loose on clear passing downs and they get Omenihu back and contributing it may just be enough of an upgrade to get the job done.

So what do you think Chiefs fans? Do you agree that the outside pass rush simply hasn't been anywhere near good enough this season? Are you hopeful that Charles Omenihu can give them enough of a boost that the outside rush won't matter as much? Do you agree that they need to give Uche more snaps on clear passing downs even if he doesn't know the defense and/or is weak in containment? I'd love to read your thoughts in the comments below.