Early this offseason, it appeared the Kansas City Chiefs' interior defensive line could be entirely lost through free agency. An intentional effort was made to retain everyone from defensive tackle Chris Jones to veteran nose tackles Derrick Nnadi and Mike Pennel.
In fact, the Chiefs have put together a good mix of nose tackles when you include Neil Farrell Jr. and Isaiah Buggs as options to help eat up space on the inside. That rotation can be a positive for the Chiefs’ run defense.
The pass rush did not improve from inside. Jones will still dominate, but he has only Tershawn Wharton to spell him as the unit’s explosive gap shooter; Wharton was re-signed after just two sacks and a pressure rate of 6.