The Kansas City Chiefs came to terms with another one of their unrestricted free agents on March 19, re-signing defensive tackle Marlon Tuipulotu.
NFL Network insider Mike Garafolo was one of the first to report the news, relaying: “The Chiefs are re-signing DL Marlon Tuipulotu, per his agents @NessMugrabi and @davidcanter of @aurasportsgroup. The former sixth-round pick of the [Philadelphia] Eagles was on KC’s roster for most of the regular season in 2024.”
Although Tuipulotu has yet to truly make a large impact with the Chiefs, he’s only 25 years old and still has a whole lot of potential at what is a probably the biggest area of need on the KC roster.
The 6-foot-2 Tuipulotu appeared in 2 games after joining the Chiefs, recording 1 tackle for a loss and 4 total tackles, but he could be called upon more in 2025.
Kansas City already lost veteran defensive tackles Derrick Nnadi and Tershawn Wharton in free agency, and Mike Pennel has yet to re-sign. This is a position that the Chiefs could also target in the draft but for now, Tuipulotu returns to provide some much-needed depth behind Chris Jones and newcomer Jerry Tillery.
Tuipulotu has tallied 3.0 career sacks and 5 career tackles for a loss at the NFL level.
Looking at Chiefs DT Marlon Tuipulotu’s Strengths & Weaknesses as an Interior Defensive Lineman
Tuipulotu is a little bit undersized to play nose tackle, or line up in the A-Gap, but has done so at times throughout his career.
According to Pro Football Focus, Tuipulotu has logged 289 defensive snaps lined up in the B-Gap throughout his professional career, with 140 snaps lined up over the offensive tackle, 90 snaps in the A-Gap and 7 snaps outside the tackle. So, there’s some versatility there but Tuipulotu is probably a three-technique DT at heart.
That’s where the Chiefs mostly used him in 2024, as he lined up in the B-Gap 53 times compared to 7 in the A-Gap and 1 over the tackle.
As for strengths and weaknesses, Tuipulotu seems to be a pretty strong tackler, with 21 key defensive “stops” on PFF and just 3 missed tackles. Despite that, his run defense grades have typically been poor, at marks under 50.0 most seasons — with the outlier being a 59.4 in 2023.
As a pass rusher, Tuipulotu has generated 11 quarterback pressures on exactly 275 pass rushing snaps. His pass rushing marks have typically hovered around 55.0 on PFF.
Needless to say, there is certainly room for improvement in Tuipulotu’s game, but the Chiefs picked him up for a reason. As KC has done in the past, they likely see him as a buy-low candidate that their coaching staff can develop.
Marlon Tuipulotu Will Compete for a Spot on the Chiefs’ 53-Man Roster at Training Camp
Tuipulotu isn’t a guarantee to make the KC roster in 2025, but his Chiefs future really depends on two things — how he progresses as a player and who Kansas City brings in as competition.
Right now, there isn’t much defensive tackle depth on the 90-man roster, but that will surely change as the offseason rolls along.
At the moment, Tuipulotu joins 2024 undrafted prospect Fabien Lovett Sr. and former Cleveland Browns third-round pick Siaki Ika as KC defensive tackles that are likely battling for a role. As mentioned above, Jones and Tillery are currently the projected starters at the position until proven otherwise.
