When a player hits free agency, it can be a major opportunity to revive their career. Maybe things didn’t work out with a previous team or they’ve played well enough to earn a bigger role somewhere else. Whatever the reason, players flock to new cities to write a new chapter to their career but sometimes things don’t work out after the cards are dealt after the NFL Draft.
The Kansas City Chiefs added plenty of talent in this year’s class, overhauling their offensive line and adding skill weapons for Patrick Mahomes. While an addition in the backfield has one free agent on the ropes, another incoming free agent could have a short stint in Kansas City after the Chiefs made an upgrade during last night's draft.
Chiefs Draft Pick Could Cost Janarius Robinson His Job
One player that signed with Kansas City for a fresh start this offseason was Janarius Robinson. A fourth-round pick by the Minnesota Vikings in the 2021 draft, Robinson couldn’t get on the field in his rookie season due to a torn ACL and missed 15 games with an ankle sprain after being claimed off waivers by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2022.
Robinson’s next opportunity came with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2023 and he was finally able to get on the field, making eight total tackles with a sack in six games. Robinson’s playing time went up last season but he didn’t see success, logging five pressures and a half-sack in 10 games and a 42.6 overall grade according to Pro Football Focus.
The rough year left Robinson to search for an opportunity and he believed he found one with the Chiefs. Kansas City was looking for help for a group that features first-round picks George Karlaftis and Felix Anudike-Uzomah, but also lacked depth with Mike Danna penciled in at right end and Charles Omenihu as a situational pass rusher. Malik Herring was also standing in Robinson’s way of making the team but things got more difficult when the Chiefs selected edge rusher Ashton Gillotte in the third round of the draft.
The 6-foot-3, 264-pound Louisville product could be summed up as solid if not spectacular but he’s shown a knack for getting to the quarterback with 25.5 sacks over four seasons. With an 11-sack campaign to his resume in 2023, Gillotte can force his way onto the field in subpackages and give himself an inside track to playing time while he develops.
This means bad news for Robinson. While he could turn in a solid camp, he’s already on the wrong end of the numbers game with six edge rushers ahead of him on the depth chart. That could lead him to another opportunity elsewhere but it limits what he could do with the Chiefs and dampens his expectations from when he signed as a free agent.