Kansas City Chiefs Sign Carlos Dunlap, Yet Another Veteran Edge Rusher

Three years in the past, it was Terrell Suggs. Final yr it was Melvin Ingram. This yr it’s Carlos Dunlap.

Kansas Metropolis Chiefs basic supervisor Brett Veach has deftly made a behavior of signing veteran Professional Bowl edger rushers to short-term offers.

And ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Dunlap, the previous Cincinnati Bengals and Seattle Seahawks defensive finish, signed a one-year deal value as much as $8 million deal on Thursday.

However in contrast to Suggs and Ingram, who have been signed throughout the center of the season, Dunlap, who labored out with Chris Jones in Miami throughout the offseason, was signed early in coaching camp and could have loads of time to grasp Steve Spagnuolo’s system.

Spagnuolo spoke with Dunlap Wednesday night time.

“I’m at all times completely happy so as to add huge, lengthy guys which have expertise,” Spagnuolo stated.

Dunlap fills an enormous want for the Chiefs. Final yr they completed fourth worst within the NFL with 31 sacks and have since misplaced Ingram to the Miami Dolphins.

Frank Clark, who initially signed a five-year, $104 million contract with the Chiefs in 2019, is slated as one beginning defensive finish. However he slumped to 4.5 sacks final yr, and his two-year, restructured contract has an out the place the Chiefs solely would owe him about $9 million in the event that they launched him after the 2022 season.

The Chiefs actually appear enamored with first-round draft choose George Karlaftis and have praised his motor, however asking him to single-handedly raise the go rush would have been lots for a rookie.

“Each younger man that is available in,” Spagnuolo stated, “there’s slightly little bit of a studying curve.”

Dunlap, 33, is similar age as Ingram, however he’s a lot larger than Ingram, Suggs or the present Chiefs defensive ends. He’s 6-6 and 285 kilos.

That peak makes him glorious at tipping passes, and he had 15 passes defended — an astounding quantity for a defensive finish — throughout his Professional Bowl season in 2016.

That represented certainly one of his two Professional Bowl appearances in a 12-year profession that has included 180 video games, 123 begins and 96 sacks.

“His resume speaks for itself,” defensive deal with Chris Jones stated.

Jones and the Chiefs hope Dunlap could make an influence like Suggs and Ingram did. Suggs performed a minimum of 33 snaps in every of the postseason video games of the Chiefs’ 2019 Tremendous Bowl title run, together with 57% of the snaps in Tremendous Bowl LIV.

And Ingram, who Travis Kelce known as the swag champ, revitalized a flailing protection final yr.

“He was outstanding for us,” Jones stated.

Throughout Dunlap’s 2021 season, he began simply two of 17 video games final yr for the Seahawks however nonetheless recorded a powerful 8.5 sacks.

The yr earlier than he was traded to the Seahawks for a seventh-round choose throughout the center of the 202o season.

Now he’s set to hitch his third NFL staff and hopes it’s a attraction.