George Karlaftis: Everything you need to know

Defensive line coach Joe Cullen said Wednesday that Karlaftis played multiple games with a broken hand in 2025, Pete Sweeney of The Kansas City Star reports. Despite the serious injury he apparently sustained prior to Week 11 at Denver, Karlaftis only missed one game last season, sitting out in Week 18 when the Chiefs were already eliminated from playoff contention. Now fully healthy, he projects to again play a huge role on the edge for Kansas City in 2026.

Karlaftis accumulated 48 tackles (25 solo), including 6.0 sacks, two pass defenses and one fumble recovery across 16 games in 2025 with the Chiefs. The fourth-year pro looked like he was on his way to a career year after opening the season with 4.5 sacks and 20 combined tackles through the first five games of the regular season. Karlaftis wasn't able to carry that momentum for the rest of 2025, but his combined tackles were one more than his previous career high set in 2023 across (16 regular-season games). The 2022 first-rounder signed a four-year, $93 million contract extension in July and will be a cornerstone of the Chiefs' defense for years to come.

Karlaftis (rest) is inactive for Sunday's contest against the Raiders, Matt McMullen of the Chiefs' official site reports. Karlaftis will get a breather in the regular-season finale with Kansas City already eliminated from the postseason. In his absence, Charles Omenihu is a top candidate to take over as a starter on the defensive line versus Las Vegas.