The Kansas City Chiefs saw firsthand how beneficial fielding a quality defensive line can be in the Super Bowl as the Philadelphia Eagles dominated the trenches. Recent draft picks like Jalen Carter, Josh Sweat, and Jordan Davis carried Philly to victory and now the Chiefs have to find a way to improve this offseason.
Thanks to Chris Jones and George Karlaftis, Kansas City has one of the NFL's best defensive lines as well. That said, there's some uncertainty moving forward with Charles Omenihu and Tershawn Wharton both entering free agency.
Whether or not the organization elects to re-sign those players, the Chiefs suddenly have an opportunity to trade for a former Pro Bowl defensive tackle from the NFC that'd be a perfect partner for Jones.
#Commanders DT Jonathan Allen — who has one year remaining on his deal — was informed by the franchise that he has permission to seek a trade, per sources. pic.twitter.com/y53zRRasjr
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) February 25, 2025
Chiefs Should Trade for Commanders DT Jonathan Allen
According to Jordan Schultz of ESPN, the Washington Commanders have given two-time Pro Bowl DT Jonathan Allen permission to seek a trade. Still just 30 years old, the veteran has one year left on his contract with a cap hit north of $22 million and it sounds like the franchise wants to go in a different direction.
He was limited to just eight games due to injury but had six consecutive seasons with at least 15 contests. Just two years removed from his second Pro Bowl honor, Allen has been a consistent force on the interior with 25 sacks in the last four seasons.
It'd admittedly be a risky move pending the potential trade compensation. Allen ranked 119th out of 219 qualified interior defensive linemen at Pro Football Focus, which admittedly isn't acceptable at the salary he's making. He's been a strong player for long enough that fans could chalk up 2024 to just a bad year, though Chiefs general manager Brett Veach would need to be careful about the type of extension Allen would likely want.
Either way, it's clear that Kansas City needs to prioritize the trenches. Philadelphia isn't going anywhere and if these teams see each other again in next year's Super Bowl, the Chiefs need to be ready.
Whether that means trading for someone like Allen or building through the draft remains to be seen, but the team can't just ignore the defensive line and expect to keep competing for Super Bowls.