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Jon Gruden highlighted the edge rusher position in Kansas City during his AFC West preview. His comments on Chiefs rookie DE R Mason Thomas stood out in a big way.
Andy Reid’s good buddy Jon Gruden has his eyes set on a specific Kansas City Chiefs rookie with 2026 NFL training camp and the preseason just around the corner.
The former NFL head coach released his AFC West Preview on his YouTube channel ahead of training camps. He covered a range of topics, including the Chiefs’ edge-rusher dilemma opposite George Karlaftis. No. 56 has proven to be a solid starter, but the position on the opposite side remains a major question mark heading into training camp.
It’s one of the more intriguing roster battles because it involves three top-100 draft picks. Gruden knows all of the actors in this one.
“Felix Anudike-Uzomah, come on man,” he said. “We’re waiting on you.”
“Ashton Gillotte, a second-year player, played 47% of the plays last year,” he said. “He had one and a half sacks. He had 22 pressures in a pick.”
“Who is it gonna be?” Gruden asked.
It seems like it was more of a rhetorical question, though.
Jon Gruden gets the hype train rolling for Chiefs rookie DE R Mason Thomas
Gruden glossed over Felix Anudike-Uzomah and Ashton Gillotte, but seemed genuinely hyped for the team’s second-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
“The guy I can’t wait to see is R Mason Thomas,” Gruden said. “He’s going to wear number 34. Second-round pick out of Oklahoma. Rookie. You talk about a factor grade. In 23 games at Oklahoma, this cat had 15.5 sacks and 22 tackles for a loss.”
Thomas has since changed his jersey number to one that better suits an edge rusher. Some might say that move will be his saving grace in 2026. What’s real is that the college production is eye-popping. Meanwhile, his style of play is intriguing because he doesn’t fit the usual Steve Spagnuolo mold. Can Thomas be the Juice off the edge that Kansas City needs? Training camp will begin to tell that story.
“They got some young guys over here opposite (George) Karlaftis that got talent,” Gruden said. “They got to show up and play big for Kansas City.”
Gruden’s excitement for R Mason Thomas is palpable. He knows the type of game-changing player he was at Oklahoma. And he knows just how important it is for the Chiefs to figure out that edge rusher position this year. There’s plenty of young talent, but the cream always rises to the top.
This article was originally published on A to Z Sports. Read the full story here: Former NFL head coach Jon Gruden can't wait to see one specific Kansas City Chiefs rookie defender during 2026 training camp
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