Kansas City Chiefs make the obvious and necessary decision with DE Felix Anudike-Uzomah, further putting his future in question
Kansas City Chiefs DE Felix Anudike-Uzomah faces his most pivotal offseason yet as the team has opted to decline his fifth-year option after a season-ending injury in 2025.
The Kansas City Chiefs have made an obvious and necessary decision with former first-round draft pick Felix Anudike-Uzomah.
According to the NFL’s personnel notice for Friday, the Chiefs declined to exercise Anudike-Uzomah’s fifth-year option for the 2027 NFL season ahead of the May 1 deadline. He’d earn $13.75 million fully guaranteed on the fifth-year option, which is a substantial discount from what edge rushers typically earn on the open market.
Other 2023 NFL Draft first-round picks to have their fifth-year options declined
Anudike-Uzomah is one of nine NFL players to have his fifth-year option declined. Here are the other players:
- QB Anthony Richardson
- DE Tyree Wilson
- OT Broderick Jones
- CB Emmanuel Forbes
- LB Jack Campbell
- CB Deonte Banks
- DT Mazi Smith
- DE Myles Murphy
Why did they decline the option? Because Anudike-Uzomah hasn’t proven himself through the first three seasons of his career.
Chiefs officially decline DE Felix Anudike-Uzomah’s fifth-year option
A former 2023 first-round draft pick out of Kansas State, Anudike-Uzomah hasn’t lived up to the billing of a first-round draft pick. He’s appeared in just 34 regular-season games with three starts over the past three seasons, recording 41 total tackles, eight tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery. He’s also appeared in four postseason games, recording six total tackles, four tackles for loss, and one sack.
Anudike-Uzomah’s 2025 season ended before it truly began, with a hamstring injury during the 2025 NFL preseason landing him on injured reserve. This came before the Chiefs’ 53-man roster cuts, which disallowed him from returning during the season. The injury took all the wind out of the sails of what was a pivotal Year 3 for Anudike-Uzomah.
Competition is getting steeper for Chiefs DE Felix Anudike-Uzomah
The injury was an unfortunate development last season because Anudike-Uzomah was trending in a positive direction. Chiefs D-Line coach Joe Cullen even recognized that the biggest thing the third-year pro needed was to display consistency.
“Felix [Anudike-Uzomah], when you go back and look at all the reps from his rookie year to last year — I mean, he flashed a lot,” Cullen said at OTAs in 2025. “And what I mean by flash is he made a lot of really good plays. And to me, talking with Felix, it’s just about consistency with that and really being able to sustain that through the year and playing more downs in the game.”
As Anudike-Uzomah enters what will be a contract year, he faces steep competition in the edge rusher room. Ashton Gillotte will be entering his second season with the team, as will edge rushers Ethan Downs and Tyreke Smith. The Chiefs drafted Oklahoma’s R Mason Thomas at pick No. 40 overall this year. They also added a trio of talented edge rushers through undrafted free agency, which will surely raise the level of competition.
Not only does Anudike-Uzomah need to prove he can stay healthy this season, but he’s also got to prove that he can make plays consistently. Otherwise, they’ll find someone else who can. This isn’t just about the near future, which might be secure due to over $3.7 million in contract guarantees in 2026. It’s about his future as a Chief alongside George Karlaftis, Ashton Gillotte, and R Mason Thomas beyond 2026.
