Philadelphia Could be Next Stop in George Karlaftis' Fascinating Journey

The edge rusher was a water polo standout in Greece who came to football late but has put himself in position to be a high first-round pick and has been linked to Eagles

INDIANAPOLIS – George Karlaftis began his journey to the NFL as a water polo player, and in his words, “I was damn good at it, too.”

He was on the U16 water polo team in Greece. At the age of 13.

Yeah, damn good all right.

Oh, Greece. That’s also part of his journey. He grew up in Athens, before moving to West Lafayette, Indiana, at the age of 13 and eventually attending Purdue.

At Purdue, he put together the kind of career that will likely lead to him being a top 15 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.

Edge rushers took to the podium at the NFL Scouting Combine on Friday inside the Indiana Convention Center.

“One word, relentless,” Karlaftis said when asked to describe his playing style. “Relentless, right? That’s how I approach life, that’s how I approach the game in terms of my technique, in terms of how I play, my motor, my effort, everything about it. Relentless.”

The 6-4, 275-pounder is a workout machine, beginning at a young age.

When he was a preteen, his water polo training was rigorous.

“I played water polo for five, six years,” he said. “Growing up that’s what I did. I played a whole lot of different sports, but I was committed to water polo. The U16 team at 13 was something I was proud of.

“I was a goalie, so training was a little different than everyone else. At 10, 11, 12-years old, I had to hold a chair with my shoulder out of the water, my chest out of the water, for 10 minutes in a row, so that’s what I attribute my strong legs to."

George Karlaftis / USA Today

Karlaftis moved to the United States after his father passed away. He was from Greece and his mother was from Indiana, so he and his mom returned to his mom’s hometown in order to be closer to her family.

He began to play football because his buddies were doing it and the coaches at school said he should give it a try.

“I didn’t know anything about the game really, I was just kind of relying on my athletic ability, my natural instinct,” he said. “I didn’t know what a first down was, how to get in a stance, or how to throw a spiral, and I really still can’t throw a spiral. That was the toughest thing, not knowing anything about it at all.

“I could see that I was physically dominant over my friends at West Lafayette High School, but no surprise. So, I was like yeah, I’m going to try it out. It can’t be too hard, I’m bigger, I’m faster, and I’m stronger than everyone. That was kind of the initial thing. I started playing and about a year later I just completely fell in love with it.”

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Karlaftis graduated from Purdue in three years with a 3.6 GPA but is smart enough to know his game must evolve and grow at the next level. He has a good friendship with former Purdue standout Ryan Kerrigan, who spent the past year with the Eagles after being with Washington for the first 10 years of his career and compiled 95.5 sacks.

“He’s been great,” said Karlaftis. “He’s been great for me, mentor for sure, someone I can go to freely and ask a question about the game, about life, what the NFL’s all about, how to conduct my business. He’s been a great help and a great friend, too.”

One knock on Karlaftis is that he’s never been a double-digit sack producer in three years with the Boilermakers. He had 7.5 as a freshman, but an injury limited him to two games as a sophomore. Last year, he had 4.5.

“I don’t know what the official numbers are,” he said. “I don’t give a crap about the official numbers and that kind of stuff. The stuff we talk about internally more is like how you affect the game is the ultimate factor. How I was able to affect opposing offenses, how I was able to garner attention for myself.

“I had two or three blockers on me at all times which freed up our other guys. I think that’s more significant. I think to a certain extent sacks are overrated. I know people like sacks and all that. I think the way you affect the quarterback, pressure the quarterback and affect the game is more significant.”

Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Fan Nation Eagles Today and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglestoday.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.