Kansas City Chiefs defensive end George Karlaftis is currently refining his pass rush skills at Sack Summit 2025.

Many of the NFL’s top sack masters are attending the event, including some past greats. Among them is former Chief Justin Houston, who played in K.C. from 2011-2018.

Karlaftis and Houston spoke with NFL insider Brian Baldinger at Sack Summit, discussing the rich history of pass rushers that the Chiefs have had throughout the history of their franchise.

“Maas (Bill Maas), Derrick Thomas, Justin Houston, George Karlaftis, Chris Jones, Tamba Hali, the history of the Chiefs’ pass rushers,” Baldinger said to Karlaftis and Houston.

“Jared Allen,” Karlaftis added. “So many guys. History is a big part of our organization. Justin knows it. The first speech [Chiefs owner] Clark Hunt has every year is about the history of this team and tradition, and how important all that is. We’re well aware of it, and we try to just keep elevating every single year.”

“The Chiefs do a good job of letting everybody know that it’s not just about this team,” Houston said. “It’s about before. How it started, when they came to Kansas City, and what it means to that family and to their organization, how big it is. So the history of that team, you want to be a part of that history because it means so much.”

Houston ranks fifth in Chiefs history with 78.5 career sacks. He appeared on track to be a perennial All-Pro after racking up 48.5 sacks in his first four seasons, but an ACL injury in 2015 really set him back. Houston still averaged a solid nine sacks per season from 2017-2020, but wasn’t consistently the force he was prior to the injury.

Karlaftis has recorded 24.5 sacks throughout his three-year career with the Chiefs. If he stays in K.C. long-term, he’ll have the opportunity to significantly shoot up the team’s all-time sack leaders list. Maintaining his average of eight sacks per season, Karlaftis would rank behind Houston in three years.