{"id":34614,"date":"2025-03-20T08:14:02","date_gmt":"2025-03-20T08:14:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=34614"},"modified":"2025-03-20T08:14:02","modified_gmt":"2025-03-20T08:14:02","slug":"chiefs-re-sign-25-year-old-free-agent-at-area-of-need-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=34614","title":{"rendered":"Chiefs Re-Sign 25-Year-Old Free Agent at Area of Need: Report"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"l-article__header\"><\/header>\n<div class=\"l-article__meta\">\n<div class=\"l-article__meta-item l-article__meta-item--dates\">\n<ul class=\"c-meta c-meta--post c-meta--list c-meta--dates\">\n<li class=\"c-meta__item c-meta__item--updated\"><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"l-article__content\">\n<div class=\"c-content entry-content\">\n<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\" class=\"wp-caption \">\n<div class=\"h-responsive\">\n<figure class=\"h-responsive__inner\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"attachment-featured-image size-featured-image wp-post-image\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Andy-Reid52-e1742429195269.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Andy-Reid52-e1742429195269.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Andy-Reid52-e1742429195269.jpg?quality=15&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Andy-Reid52-e1742429195269.jpg?quality=35&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"Chiefs head coach Andy Reid.\" width=\"780\" height=\"437\" data-img-load-time=\"281\" data-dom-ready-time=\"912\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"caption-credit\">Getty<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"c-post-image-caption-text\">The Kansas City Chiefs were able to re-sign another free agent.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/nfl\/kansas-city-chiefs\/\">K<\/a>ansas City Chiefs\u00a0came to terms with another one of their unrestricted free agents on March 19, re-signing defensive tackle\u00a0Marlon Tuipulotu.<\/p>\n<p>NFL Network insider\u00a0Mike Garafolo was one of the first to report\u00a0the news, relaying: \u201cThe Chiefs are re-signing DL Marlon Tuipulotu, per his agents @NessMugrabi and @davidcanter of @aurasportsgroup. The former sixth-round pick of the\u00a0[Philadelphia] Eagles\u00a0was on KC\u2019s roster for most of the regular season in 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Although Tuipulotu has yet to truly make a large impact with the Chiefs, he\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_1_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad adthrive-content adthrive-content-1 adthrive-ad-cls\" data-google-query-id=\"\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_\/18190176,25816858\/AdThrive_Content_1\/5ad7479721520f50ab7da88e_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"google-ad-manager-fallback-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The 6-foot-2 Tuipulotu\u00a0appeared in 2 games\u00a0after joining the Chiefs, recording 1 tackle for a loss and 4 total tackles, but he could be called upon more in 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Kansas City already lost veteran defensive tackles\u00a0Derrick Nnadi\u00a0and\u00a0Tershawn Wharton\u00a0in free agency, and\u00a0Mike Pennel\u00a0has 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\u00a0Chris Jones\u00a0and newcomer\u00a0Jerry Tillery.<\/p>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_2_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad adthrive-content adthrive-content-2 adthrive-ad-cls\" data-google-query-id=\"\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_\/18190176,25816858\/AdThrive_Content_2\/5ad7479721520f50ab7da88e_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"google-ad-manager-fallback-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Tuipulotu has tallied 3.0 career sacks and 5 career tackles for a loss at the\u00a0NFL\u00a0level.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Looking at Chiefs DT Marlon Tuipulotu\u2019s Strengths &amp; Weaknesses as an Interior Defensive Lineman<\/h2>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>According\u00a0to 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\u2019s some versatility there but Tuipulotu is probably a three-technique DT at heart.<\/p>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_3_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad adthrive-content adthrive-content-3 adthrive-ad-cls\" data-google-query-id=\"\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_\/18190176,25816858\/AdThrive_Content_3\/5ad7479721520f50ab7da88e_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"google-ad-manager-fallback-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>That\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n<p>As for strengths and weaknesses, Tuipulotu seems to be a pretty strong tackler, with 21 key defensive \u201cstops\u201d on PFF and just 3 missed tackles. Despite that, his run defense grades have typically been poor, at marks under 50.0 most seasons \u2014 with the outlier being a 59.4 in 2023.<\/p>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_4_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad adthrive-content adthrive-content-4 adthrive-ad-cls\" data-google-query-id=\"\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_\/18190176,25816858\/AdThrive_Content_4\/5ad7479721520f50ab7da88e_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"google-ad-manager-fallback-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>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.<\/p>\n<p>Needless to say, there is certainly room for improvement in Tuipulotu\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Marlon Tuipulotu Will Compete for a Spot on the Chiefs\u2019 53-Man Roster at Training Camp<\/h2>\n<p>Tuipulotu isn\u2019t a guarantee to make the KC roster in 2025, but his Chiefs future really depends on two things \u2014 how he progresses as a player and who Kansas City brings in as competition.<\/p>\n<p>Right now, there isn\u2019t much defensive tackle depth on the 90-man roster, but that will surely change as the offseason rolls along.<\/p>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_6_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad  adthrive-content adthrive-content-6\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_5_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad adthrive-content adthrive-content-5 adthrive-ad-cls\" data-google-query-id=\"\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_\/18190176,25816858\/AdThrive_Content_5\/5ad7479721520f50ab7da88e_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"google-ad-manager-fallback-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>At the moment, Tuipulotu joins 2024 undrafted prospect\u00a0Fabien Lovett Sr.\u00a0and former\u00a0Cleveland Browns\u00a0third-round pick\u00a0Siaki Ik<a href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/nfl\/player\/siaki-ika\/\">a<\/a>\u00a0as 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.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Getty The Kansas City Chiefs were able to re-sign another free agent. The\u00a0Kansas City Chiefs\u00a0came to terms with another one of their unrestricted free agents on March&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":34616,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34614","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Chiefs Re-Sign 25-Year-Old Free Agent at Area of Need: Report - 24\/7 News America<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=34614\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Chiefs Re-Sign 25-Year-Old Free Agent at Area of Need: Report - 24\/7 News America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Getty The Kansas City Chiefs were able to re-sign another free agent. 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