It seems obvious that the Kansas City Chiefs are destined for an offseason of major changes. The franchise will miss the playoffs for the first time since the 2014 season. Added to this is the injury to Patrick Mahomes that leaves the quarterback's 2026 future in question as he begins rehab to work his way back from a torn ACL. All of this adds up to the Chiefs needing to retool the roster and give young players a chance to work their way into contributing roles. Near the top of this list should be pass rusher Ashton Gillotte, who picked the perfect time to gain steam.
After initially starting slow (zero sacks in the first seven weeks), the rookie edge rusher has begun showing signs of life. Gillotte had an interception against the Los Angeles Chargers and registered 0.5 sacks in each of the past two weeks. This production makes it clear that the defender has a bright future in Kansas City.
The Chiefs' retool is going to require a bit of trust in younger pieces that will help the front office navigate the cap. This perfectly sets up Gillotte for a potential starting role if the pass rusher can continue to put together a strong finish to the 2025 season.
Chiefs Pass Rusher Ashton Gillotte Quickly Forcing His Way into Kansas City's Future Plans
Furthering the importance of Gillotte is the fact that the Chiefs currently rank 20th in the league in sacks per game. Kansas City's pass rush badly needs to be rebuilt and find new life. Gillotte is the ideal start to this, allowing the Chiefs to move away from aging and failing veterans in favor of an affordable rookie contract that offers far more potential upside.
There is a reason why the Chiefs drafted the defender 66th overall, with it being clear that this level of investment is going to earn snaps. Add in the season full of failure and Kansas City already being over next season's projected salary cap, and it all sets up for Gillotte to take advantage of the overturn and force his way into becoming a building block.
For the Chiefs, it is exciting to have a young pass rusher showing potential despite the unit struggling so consistently. Charles Omenihu has underwhelmed, while George Karlaftis hasn't developed as expected. This has left the edge rushing unit consistently flat and begs that the Chiefs shake up the position.
For Gillotte, this means more snaps over the season's final three games after seeing 50% or more of the defensive snaps each of the past two weeks. It is an exciting sign for the rookie and at least offers KC fans some reason to continue to tune in during a lost season. If the rookie can continue his hot finish, Gillotte will officially be considered a building block and a potential starter heading into the 2026 offseason.