With less than a week remaining until the NFL’s trade deadline, the Kansas City Chiefs are continuing to upgrade their roster. Last week, the Chiefs traded with the Tennessee Titans to acquire wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins.
I thought it would be Kansas City’s last move before the deadline. I didn’t see any major weaknesses on the roster — although after Jaylen Watson’s injury, I would have understood the team pursuing a cornerback.
I certainly wasn’t expecting the team to bolster its pass rush. But that’s exactly what they did on Monday, trading their 2026 sixth-round pick to the New England Patriots for defensive end Josh Uche.
A 2020 second-round pick from Michigan, Uche is best known as a designated pass rusher. Even during his days with the Wolverines, he was used almost exclusively on pass-rushing downs. While he did come out of college with 33 5/8-inch arms — an excellent number — his 6-foot-1, 245-pound frame made it hard to imagine him as an every-down NFL player.
Still, Uche did have elite pass-rushing traits that made him an intriguing prospect. His combination of speed and bend allowed him to fly off the ball and beat quarterbacks to the top of their drops. As a rookie, he did need to polish his inside counter moves — but generally, his job was simple: win quickly.
Fortunately, he landed in a situation that allowed him to do exactly that. Bill Belichick’s Patriots could afford having a player like Uche, because they could use their big, burly defensive linemen on early downs to stop the run. Then Uche could be used in their creative pressure packages.
Early on, Uche was very impactful in this role. In 2022 — a career year — he finished with 56 pressures and 12 sacks on only 285 pass-rushing snaps. Among low-usage players, he was one of the league’s most efficient pass rushers.
Josh Uche, 2020-2024
| Year | Pass Reps |
Prss | Scks | Hits | Hurr | Prss Pct |
Sck Pct |
PFF Win Pct |
| 2020 | 99 | 14 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 14.1% | 1.0% | 18.5% |
| 2021 | 161 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 10.6% | 1.9% | 13.4% |
| 2022 | 285 | 56 | 12 | 3 | 41 | 19.7% | 4.2% | 19.2% |
| 2023 | 227 | 37 | 3 | 6 | 28 | 16.3% | 1.3% | 11.1% |
| 2024 | 96 | 13 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 13.5% | 2.1% | 17.2% |
| Total | 868 | 137 | 21 | 20 | 96 | 15.8% | 2.4% | – |
All data from Pro Football Focus
But as we see here, his production has tapered off since then. He was solid in 2023 with 37 pressures but had just three sacks; he made fewer splash plays. Then this season — with Belichick gone — Uche has been struggling to find a role in the New England defense. He has accumulated decent numbers — 13 pressures and two sacks over just 96 pass-rushing snaps — but it appears he doesn’t figure in the team’s plans. So it made sense for the Patriots to collect a pick for him.
And it made sense for Kansas City to make the trade. Giving up a 2026 sixth-round pick for a player with pass-rushing film like Uche’s is a bargain. Every year, we see the value of having as many pass rushers as possible. For a team in the Chiefs’ position, these kinds of players are worth having around — even if they only get one or two key pressures in the playoffs. Uche can do that.
Even better: there’s no reason Kansas City couldn’t keep him after 2024. Uche probably won’t have a significant market in free agency, so the Chiefs could keep him on an inexpensive contract. All in all, I think getting him was a great move.
Here’s the most intriguing question: what does this signing mean for the team’s other defensive ends — particularly now that we’re getting closer to Charles Omenihu’s return to the active roster?
We know that Uche won’t play on running downs. The Chiefs have plenty of other options available. Omenihu, George Karlaftis, Mike Danna, Malik Herring and even Leo Chenal can do that. Just as with his previous teams, Uche will be used almost exclusively as a designated pass rusher.
When Uche comes in on a key third down, we know Chris Jones will be on the field — but not necessarily where he will be. The superstar defensive tackle has perfected the ability to find the defensive line’s weakest spot — whether it’s on the inside or the outside — and attack it. Kansas City can allow this because they have players like Danna, Karlaftis and Omenihu — all of whom can also rush from the inside.
So when Uche comes in, he’ll always be the other edge rusher, getting upfield and forcing players into Jones. What will that mean for the other rushers — especially when Jones is playing on the outside? If the Chiefs use Tershawn Wharton as one of the pass rushers, it means that only one of Karlaftis, Danna or Omenihu can also be on the field. Can Uche be good enough to justify having those players on the bench on a third down?
To me, this is the most relevant with regard to Karlaftis — who isn’t a bad interior pass rusher but is significantly more impactful on the edge. If Jones and Uche are on the outside, can Karlaftis show more on the inside? Or will we see Omenihu or Danna slide into those spots, giving Karlaftis a breather?
But I’ll be honest: none of this really concerns me. Defensive line coach Joe Cullen and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo are going to figure it out. Besides, I’m always on the side of getting as many pass rushers as possible — especially one with a skillset that none of the team’s other players possesses. I’m intrigued to see how Kansas City will fit all these players together — and how using one like Uche could unlock the Chiefs’ defensive front.
