Longtime NFL defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah spent the offseason with the Kansas City Chiefs before the team cut him on Sunday, August 30, but his departure from the organization was short-lived.
Per a report from legue insider Jordan Schultz on social media, Ogbah rejoined the Chiefs as a member of the practice squad on Monday.
Ogbah is a 10-year veteran of the league who joined the Cleveland Browns as a second-round pick out of Oklahoma in 2016. He spent three seasons there before joining the Chiefs for the 2019 campaign (10 appearances, four starts), where he went on to win a Super Bowl ring.
Ogbah then played the next five campaigns with the Miami Dolphins before spending last year with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
All told, Ogbah has tallied 332 combined tackles, including 52 tackles for loss, 116 quarterback hits, 48 sacks, 42 pass breakups, nine forced fumbles and two interceptions. He signed with the Chiefs in mid-August on a one-year deal worth $1.3 million before the team cut him Sunday and then added him back to the practice squad approximately 24 hours later.
R Mason Thomas Headlines Future of Chiefs’ Pass Rush
Kansas City’s 53-man roster includes defensive ends George Karlaftis, Felix Anudike-Uzomah, second-round rookie R Mason Thomas and Ashton Gillotte as the top four members of the group.
The Chiefs also claimed undrafted rookie pass-rusher Jack Pyburn off of waivers after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers cut him on Sunday. Pyburn led the league with four sacks across three preseason games.
Thomas’s athletic skill set has stood out during training camp and the preseason, and he is the likely heir apparent to Anudike-Uzomah as the team’s second starting defensive end.
While Thomas can offer the Chiefs’ defense the kind of speed rush it has been missing off the edge of the line for years, Anudike-Uzomah is essentially a first-round bust three seasons after Kansas City selected him with the No. 31 overall pick out of Kansas State.
Anudike-Uzomah missed the entirety of the 2025 campaign with a hamstring injury. He appeared in all 34 regular season games for the Chiefs across his first two seasons, but started just three contests. All told, he has played 550 snaps on defense and 26 snaps on special teams since joining the NFL.
Chiefs Focused on Making Improvements to Interior of Defensive Line
Kansas City also invested heavily along the defensive interior, adding multiple pieces around superstar defensive tackle Chris Jones.
The Chiefs drafted Peter Woods late in the first round, while also signing Khyiris Tonga as a run-stopper in free agency.
Kansas City used its first three draft picks in April on defensive players, trading up to select cornerback Mansoor Delane No. 6 overall out of LSU before landing on Woods later on Day 1 and Thomas early in Round 2.
Chiefs Reconnect With Super Bowl Champion DE, Add 48 Sacks to Defense