REACTIONS: George Karlaftis Has Another Big Game for Chiefs
Another week, another impressive showing for the Kansas City Chiefs' 2022 rookie class. Another week, another big game from defensive end George Karlaftis.
After receiving rave reviews for his debut last week against the Chicago Bears, Karlaftis followed it up by recording another sack on Saturday in Kansas City's 24-14 win over the Washington Commanders. The 30th overall pick in April's 2022 NFL Draft was known for his impressive motor and strength in college at Purdue, and both of those have combined with some seemingly improved flexibility to earn him multiple pressures through two contests. Versus Washington's offensive line, Karlaftis was able to work through a double-team (and a possible hold) and bring down quarterback Carson Wentz.
Karlaftis also recorded a separate tackle in the Chiefs' victory, bringing his preseason totals to three tackles and a pair of sacks overall. His willingness to never give up on a play has endeared him to teammates and fans alike, as well as his coaches. Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has made it perfectly clear during the offseason and training camp what he likes about Karlaftis's game, and head coach Andy Reid added to that praise on Saturday afternoon.
"George is 100 mph all the time," Reid said. "I appreciate that, the effort. He'll keep getting better with technique and after he gets a feel on how these offensive linemen play him. He's a talented kid, smart, [and] wants to be good. I liked his celebration dance."
Reid isn't the only one who took notice of the celebration(s) from Karlaftis. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes touchdown touched on the need for Karlaftis to develop something new, saying the following after the Bears game:
The only thing we have to work on is his celebration because I don't know what that was. He did a double-arm flex down. I've never seen that one. I was like, at least go up with the flex if you are going to do something. We're going to work on that, and we'll get back to you.
And get back to everyone, Karlaftis did. More important than his sack celebration, though, how he got to that point was the impressive part. Below, Nate Tice of The Athletic tips his cap to Karlaftis's athleticism. That's something that was a major question mark leading up to the draft but looking back in retrospect — even after such a limited sample size — it seems as if those concerns were overstated:
As mentioned, two preseason games is an incredibly small observation window to peer through. With that said, longstanding high-end traits for highly-drafted rookies typically don't tend to disappear. Karlaftis's work ethic and speed-to-power ability have been parts of his game for years. The newfound quickness and bend serve as flashes back to his 2019 season with the Boilermakers, and those elements are helping him stand out this preseason. Reid is aboard the hype train, as is Mahomes, and it doesn't appear that they're the only ones keeping up with Karlaftis early on.
