Arrowhead Pride
The Kansas City Chiefs’ season is over. On Sunday, the team was eliminated from playoff contention with a 16-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, and star quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered a brutal ACL injury. Both losses sting, and the NFL’s model franchise over the last eight seasons will not be part of the postseason for the first time since 2014.
Now, over the final three games, the Chiefs have a chance to truly evaluate the young talent on the roster and make decisions on which players will have larger roles in the future.
Defensive end Ashton Gillotte has had a quiet rookie season, but his snaps have increased over the last three weeks. This suggests this year’s third-round pick is building momentum going into 2026.
Playing 42% of the defensive snaps, Gillotte has 27 total tackles, 1.5 sacks and six quarterback hits. He has also contributed 69 total snaps on special teams this season. The numbers are modest, but in line with what Kansas City has asked of him.
The rookie was slated third string on the depth chart in the preseason, but injuries to Felix Anudike-Uzomah and Janarius Robinson forced him into a larger role. Gillotte still had to wait his turn behind veterans George Karlaftis, Mike Danna, and Charles Omenihu at defensive end, but he has flashed more often as the season has progressed.
Given his size and frame, Gillotte projected as a solid run stopper in the pre-draft process; it has easily been the most impressive part of his rookie performance.
On the snap, Gillotte uses his frame to his advantage as he creates leverage and gets under the tackle’s pads. With strong hands and a good lockout, he presses the tackle into the backfield, wins the inside gap and is the first player to get to the running back, bringing him down for a minimal gain.
This was the most recent example, but Gillotte has been showing development as a run-stuffing end all season.
Against the Buffalo Bills in Week 9, Gillotte does a good job of reading the play and taking on the kickout block. Gillotte quickly wins the game of pad level, then uses his strength to dig in and stuff the block at the line of scrimmage.
As running back James Cook attempts to slip through the hole, Gillotte detaches and helps secure the tackle.
With his stout physique and strong base, he showed the ability to stuff blockers in the hole and displayed the athletic ability needed to slip off of blocks and make plays as well.
The area that Gillotte will need the most improvement in is pass rushing. His frame gave him an advantage in the run game, but it hurt him when rushing the passer. Most of the pressure he was able to create came as a result of quarterbacks holding the ball and his relentless effort.
This was an issue for the Chiefs’ pass rush...
