Grading the signing: Khyiris Tonga gives Kansas City Chiefs’ defensive line something they’ve been missing
Khyiris Tonga makes the Kansas City Chiefs a better team in several ways.
There’s a whole lot to like about the way that the Kansas City Chiefs have navigated 2026 NFL free agency so far. They stole headlines with their move to add Super Bowl LX MVP Kenneth Walker on Day 1, but they had just as much of an impactful move in the defensive trenches.
They signed another Super Bowl LX participant in New England Patriots defensive tackle Khyiris Tonga. The former BYU Cougar entered the league in the 2021 NFL Draft as a seventh-round pick with the Chicago Bears. The 6-foot-2 and 335-pound defensive tackle has since played for five different NFL clubs before landing with New England on a one-year deal in 2025.
His contract, reported as a three-year deal worth $21 million, with $14 million guaranteed, is effectively a two-year deal with a third-year option. At 29 years old, it makes sense that they wouldn’t guarantee that third year.
Tonga isn’t exactly a household name, but he gives Kansas City something they haven’t really had at the nose tackle spot.
Khyiris Tonga is the pocket-crushing presence the Chiefs have lacked opposite Chris Jones
If you look at the last several years in Kansas City, they’ve gone with the budget approach on the interior defensive line. They invested a ton of money in Chris Jones, and as a result, they’ve surrounded him with cheaper veterans. Guys who can two-gap, but don’t actually do much to displace and move offensive linemen off their spot.
Turn on the tape, and you’ll find that Tonga uses his strength and leverage to overpower interior offensive linemen and displace them in the run game. He often disrupts rushing lanes and allows for linebackers to get into the backfield and make tackles for loss at a high rate. Tonga was a big reason why linebackers Robert Spillane, Christian Elliss, and Jack Gibbens were among league leaders in run-stop percentage. He’s about to be the new best friend of guys like Nick Bolton and Drue Tranquill.
While Tonga plays that traditional run-stuffing nose guard role well, there’s also a lot to like about him as an ascending pass-rusher as well. He set a career-high mark in pressures in 2025 with the Patriots, earning a pass-rush win rate of 11.2%. That ranked in the top-30 among NFL interior defensive linemen in 2025. It feels like the pairing with the likes of Chris Jones could open up even more opportunities for him to get pressure on the quarterback.
The fun part about this is that Tonga is a two-way player, playing fullback for the Patriots in 2025 as well. He took 18 snaps on offense, aligning in the backfield, inline, on the wings, and even as a receiver in the slot and out wide. Everyone knows just how creative Andy Reid can get with the trick plays involving a defensive tackle playing the fullback position. Just look at what he did with Dontari Poe during his early tenure with the Chiefs. There is actually true value to playing him as a fullback, though. He’s powerful and can clear the way as a lead blocker.
Kansas City Chiefs News
Updated list of Kansas City Chiefs’ 2026 NFL Draft picks after the league officially awarded compensatory picks
The full and official 2026 NFL Draft order has been revealed.
