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Chiefs: George Karlaftis $93 million extension a potential steal for Kansas City

The Chiefs signed defensive end George Karlaftis down to a four-year extension.

Written by Nicholas McGee
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Chiefs: George Karlaftis $93 million extension a potential steal for Kansas City

Having tied down Trey Smith to a long-term contract to make him the highest-paid guard in the NFL, the Kansas City Chiefs paid another recent draft success on Sunday.

The Chiefs, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, came to an agreement on a four-year, $93 million contract extension including $62 million guaranteed with defensive end George Karlaftis.

Karlaftis was picked by the Chiefs in the first round in 2022 and quickly developed into a key member of the teams that won the Super Bowl in his rookie year and successfully defended the title in the 2023 campaign. He enjoyed another disruptive season in 2024 as the Chiefs reached a third successive Super Bowl, only to be denied a three-peat by the Philadelphia Eagles.

His extension follows a season in which Karlaftis had eight sacks, down from a career-high of 10.5 in 2023. Yet his sack tally of 24.5 in three seasons doesn’t do Karlaftis’ impact justice.

Karlaftis had 61 pressures last season, per Pro Football Focus, putting him tied-13th among all edge defenders. In 2023, he had 64 pressures.

While those numbers do not put him among the game’s elite outside pass rushers, Karlaftis has consistently demonstrated an ability to deliver when it matters most, in the crucible of the postseason.

Indeed, Karlaftis has eight playoff sacks in his three seasons as a pro, including a pair in AFC Championship Games and 1.5 in Super Bowls.

He is a player on whom Steve Spagnuolo knows he can rely, not just to rush the passer, but also to set a hard edge and hold his ground against the run, and occasionally drop back into coverage to facilitate the often exotic pressures the Chiefs defensive coordinator is renowned for drawing up.

In that sense, Karlaftis has vindicated Spanguolo’s initial impression of him.

Spagnuolo said of a pre-draft interview with Karlaftis in 2022: “I’m observing, I’m watching and I’m looking at the faces on those Zoom calls. This guy was just so into what we were talking about. He didn’t want to get off the Zoom call. He wanted more questions. He just looked real hungry to me, a guy that is passionate about the game of football. I think that’s exactly what we got.”

“There was something about him that I said, ‘Boy, if we could get this kind of person in here, I think that would be an extra bonus,’ in addition to the fact that he was a really good football player.”

Karlaftis has certainly proven a bonus for Kansas City and his ascension has lessened the need for Spagnuolo, whose play-calling is less reliant on the blitz than many believe, to lean on pressure packages.

The Athens-born defender has made the Chiefs’ four-man rush more imposing. Karlaftis consistently harnesses the explosiveness that was evident during his college career at Purdue, but has developed into a well-rounded rusher who can win with impressive hand usage and an ability to get around the edge, along with the power that has long since been a feature of his game.

And the most exciting thing for the Chiefs is that Karlaftis is still only 24. He is a player whose skill set is already advanced but who still has a lot of room to grow with the years he has ahead of him.

In that sense, Karlaftis’ contract represents a potential steal.

Karlaftis’ new contract carries an average annual value of $23.25 million, only good enough for 11th among all edge defenders. The total guarantees of $62 million put him ninth for his position.

That represents an accurate reflection of the influence Karlaftis has had to this point but, if he continues on his current trajectory, Karlaftis’ new deal will start to look like exceptional value for money.

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