George Karlaftis is Ready for Year Two Leap

Kansas City Chiefs defensive end George Karlaftis (56) sacks Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) in the second quarter during the AFC championship NFL game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Kansas City Chiefs, Sunday, Jan. 29, 2023, at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. The Kansas City Chiefs lead the Cincinnati Bengals, 13-6, at halftime.Cincinnati Bengals At Kansas City Chiefs Afc Championship Jan 29 0119 /

The Chiefs have aspirations of a top-10 defense in 2023-24. If they’re able to accomplish that goal, former first-round draft pick George Karlaftis will be a big reason why.

Karlaftis finished the season with 33 tackles, six sacks, and an impressive seven passes deflected, though it was his performance throughout the second half of the year that should have fans salivating with excitement.

George Karlaftis’ Second-Half Surge

After accumulating just 0.5 sacks through the first nine games of the year, Karlaftis exploded in the second half to become one of the NFL’s more dominant pass rushers.

Stat we just mentioned with George Karlaftis entering year 2 and how he ended last year

Week 12-18 he had 5.5 sacks, 7 TFL, 15 tackles. He’s 1 of 7 players in the NFL with those numbers in the final 7 weeks

Chris Jones
Nick Bosa
Myles Garrett
Cam Heyward
Josh Sweat
JJ Watt
— Jason Anderson (@J810Anderson) July 21, 2023

Karlaftis and Chris Jones are the only teammates on that list, giving Kansas City a one-two punch on the defensive line that can go toe-to-toe with any other duo in the league.

Frank Clark is no longer on the roster, so expectations are high for Karlaftis as the Chiefs hope to finish a top-10 defense in 2023-24. After finishing with the second-most sacks in the league last season, Kansas City has a path to even better numbers if the former Purdue standout can replicate his late-season success.

Here's your reminder that George Karlaftis racked up the second-most pressures (48) and third-most sacks (6) of any rookie in the NFL last season.

💪💪💪 pic.twitter.com/emP6Jehnu0
— Matt McMullen (@KCChiefs_Matt) July 14, 2023

He had at least a half sack in six of the Chiefs’ last seven regular season games and added a pivotal sack in the AFC Championship against the Bengals.

There are many reasons to be excited about Kansas City’s defense this season with so many young contributors. Karlaftis is expected to help usher in a new era of Chiefs’ defensive dominance, and his continued development is the key for Kansas City’s unit to reach new heights.

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