*****The George Karlaftis Thread*****

[Dante84]

More to come!

What are the #Chiefs getting in George Karlaftis?

Had an NFC Personnel executive tell me “He reminds me of J.J. Watt, when Watt was coming out. An explosive and versatile playmaker who has a high motor and can line up at 3,5, or 7. Very strong kid” #NFL #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/5qM3g6OrMr

— Matt Lombardo (@MattLombardoNFL) April 29, 2022

George Karlaftis was drafted with pick 30 of round 1 in the 2022 draft class. He scored a 9.23 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 116 out of 1503 DE from 1987 to 2022. https://t.co/iXXBvnoFJc #RAS #Chiefs pic.twitter.com/eZ9XjNRDUB

— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) April 29, 2022

“I was sitting there the whole night hoping we’d be able to get you.”

Karlaftis gets the call �� pic.twitter.com/DRGBDekvnl

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) April 29, 2022

[Kiimo]

Seth Keysor’s film study of Cook is very promising

[-King-]

Originally Posted by O.city

I don't really see him similar to Tamba at all.

This. Hali was surprisingly agile for as stocky as he was.

[JPH83]

Originally Posted by Chris Meck

I think it's very difficult to overstate just how shitty Sorensen was and had been for a long time.

For a 'saavy veteran' that guy missed more tackles, blew more coverages, and just flat looked clueless 90% of the time.

But then every once in awhile would make a big play and the casual fans just loved him.

I ****ing hated him.

I cannot fathom just how bad Armani Watts must be.

This is how I feel about Clark...kidding. But also not really, and also yes, Sorensen was ass.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by JPH83

This is how I feel about Clark...kidding. But also not really, and also yes, Sorensen was ass.

My biggest issue with Clark has been (once I immediately dispensed with any DPOY upside) effort level.

I see that guy quit on so many damn plays. And when you watch Danna, you can tell how limited t he guy is but his effort pops off the screen. When you watch Wharton you can see how green he is, but again - the effort is obvious.

Then you watch Clark and man that guy loafed his ass off out there. Jones takes plays off as well but when Jones does he's at least still mostly present. He still occupies attention. And he does so significantly less often.

Clark, OTOH, doesn't occupy attention and doesn't tap out infrequently. He just kinda shoves his arms straight out and stands there. Then he'll have a snap or two where he tries to chain a move on a move and if those don't work he goes right back to jaking the rest of the drive.

He wouldn't drive me so freakin' insane if he'd just give a shit.

Sorensen just hit a physical wall and we asked him to do WAY more than he was capable of. So then he started cheating and then he'd get locked in a rocking chair.

[Quesadilla Joe]

From Bob McGinn:

6. GEORGE KARLAFTIS, Purdue (6-3 1/2, 263, 4.77, 1-2): Third-year junior started all 27 games of his career. “There’s a clear separation between him and Hutchinson,” one scout said. “He’s not as twitchy and doesn’t have the bend and that strength on the edge that Aidan does or that you really want in a first-round edge player. He certainly has high-level effort. He’s consistent. You know what you’re getting.” Lived in Athens, Greece until his father died and his mother moved the family to West Lafayette, Ind., when he was 13. “He’s polished and got a story to tell, and he’s compelling that way,” said a second scout who has interviewed him. “I thought, ‘Whoa, this guy’s going to wear out his assistant coach, whoever that is.’ This guy’s supposed to be this incredible effort guy but you can find clips of him just jogging along like the rest of the Boilers. I thought he was OK as a left end at the point … and he was OK as a right end pure rush man. He’s more of a culture-changer than a difference-maker or game-closer. I didn’t think he was as good as Rob Ninkovich.” Finished with 99 tackles (30 ½ for loss), 14 ½ sacks, four forced fumbles and five passes defensed. Arms were 32 5/8. One scout compared him to Trey Hendrickson. “He reminded me of the way Brandon Graham plays,” a fourth scout said. “He’s not as tall or as long but he plays with such natural leverage. He’s strong.” Wonderlic of 20.

[DJ's left nut]

Oh - that’s a good one.

Mid-late career Ninkovich when he muscled up a little more and started playing on the DL more. And it’s another example of how a complementary teammate can elevate a guy like that. Ninkovich was far more dangerous as a complementary threat opposite of Chandler Jones than he was as the top dog.

[O.city]

I'm shocked that a difference making pass rushing prospect wasn't available at 30 in the draft. Those guys always seem to drop.

[JPH83]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

My biggest issue with Clark has been (once I immediately dispensed with any DPOY upside) effort level.

I see that guy quit on so many damn plays. And when you watch Danna, you can tell how limited t he guy is but his effort pops off the screen. When you watch Wharton you can see how green he is, but again - the effort is obvious.

Then you watch Clark and man that guy loafed his ass off out there. Jones takes plays off as well but when Jones does he's at least still mostly present. He still occupies attention. And he does so significantly less often.

Clark, OTOH, doesn't occupy attention and doesn't tap out infrequently. He just kinda shoves his arms straight out and stands there. Then he'll have a snap or two where he tries to chain a move on a move and if those don't work he goes right back to jaking the rest of the drive.

He wouldn't drive me so freakin' insane if he'd just give a shit.

Sorensen just hit a physical wall and we asked him to do WAY more than he was capable of. So then he started cheating and then he'd get locked in a rocking chair.

Preaching to the choir. Can't stand the lazy POS.

[Rasputin]

Get this kid in the weight room and bulk up some strength and agility he will be more of a force to deal with. He seems like a guy that will do anything coaches tell him and he will prosper. He's young enough to add bulk to his frame and can work on getting quicker and powerful with leg press. He seems like he will work hard for this team. Stoked to have him like his attitude and personality will fit also. Greek the Freak.

He will likely struggle his first year but after he gets the feel for NFL level he will improve and each year he will wreck teams quarterback or running backs.

This draft diffidently set us up for success next several years along with last years O line draft and upgrades. Teams will learn to fear the Kansas City Chiefs

I'm tired how just because Tyreek Hill left us that all of a sudden we are going be a shitty team. We have always won as a team he didn't play every down and he missed some games we still had success. Just can't wait for this offense to make a statement that we are still here and even better than before. Verch drafted guys with tenacity on both sides of the ball and that's the level of play we are going get tenacity.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Rasputin

Get this kid in the weight room and bulk up some strength and agility he will be more of a force to deal with. He seems like a guy that will do anything coaches tell him and he will prosper. He's young enough to add bulk to his frame and can work on getting quicker and powerful with leg press. He seems like he will work hard for this team. Stoked to have him like his attitude and personality will fit also. Greek the Freak.

He will likely struggle his first year but after he gets the feel for NFL level he will improve and each year he will wreck teams quarterback or running backs.

This draft diffidently set us up for success next several years along with last years O line draft and upgrades. Teams will learn to fear the Kansas City Chiefs

I'm tired how just because Tyreek Hill left us that all of a sudden we are going be a shitty team. We have always won as a team he didn't play every down and he missed some games we still had success. Just can't wait for this offense to make a statement that we are still here and even better than before. Verch drafted guys with tenacity on both sides of the ball and that's the level of play we are going get tenacity.

Watch his clips as a Freshman vs. the clips as a Junior - strength isn't an issue for him. He was actually a fair amount more agile as a Freshman than he was last year.

In some ways he may have pushed the needle a bit too far. And if you bulk him up any more, he's going to get more and more stiff.

He's just not a guy that can play at 270+ lbs and stay fluid. You may have to take a little weight off him in the search for a sweet spot if you want to get more pass-rush productivity out of him.

Or just leave him at 270 and have him play more a more SDE style of game. That's fine too.

Bottom line is more guys have to trade flexibility for strength unless they're unicorns and Karlaftis, while a good player, isn't that kind of guy. He's going to have a bit of a balancing act between power and agility.

[The Franchise]

It's going to be ****ing nice watching a DE that doesn't give up 80% of the time. This kid is going to go nonstop for as long as his body allows him to. And then he'll just keep going.

[Dante84]

Remember when rookie hold-outs was a thing?

Kansas City reached agreement with first-round pick George Karlaftis - the No. 30 overall selection - on a four-year, fully-guaranteed contract, per source.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 6, 2022

[O.city]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Watch his clips as a Freshman vs. the clips as a Junior - strength isn't an issue for him. He was actually a fair amount more agile as a Freshman than he was last year.

In some ways he may have pushed the needle a bit too far. And if you bulk him up any more, he's going to get more and more stiff.

He's just not a guy that can play at 270+ lbs and stay fluid. You may have to take a little weight off him in the search for a sweet spot if you want to get more pass-rush productivity out of him.

Or just leave him at 270 and have him play more a more SDE style of game. That's fine too.

Bottom line is more guys have to trade flexibility for strength unless they're unicorns and Karlaftis, while a good player, isn't that kind of guy. He's going to have a bit of a balancing act between power and agility.

This is where some may get upset about it, but he's basically about as physically maxed from a "bulk him up" standpoint as you're gonna get while keeping his athleticism what it is as you want.

He's a plug and play guy. He'll learn some things and physically mature a litte in the next few years (he's only 21) and be a good solid player.

People will see "1st round pick" and want him to be Tj Watt, when he's a 6-8 sack per year SDE playing solid run d.

It's fine to be a good player. Not everyone has to be an elite player.

[The Franchise]

Originally Posted by O.city

This is where some may get upset about it, but he's basically about as physically maxed from a "bulk him up" standpoint as you're gonna get while keeping his athleticism what it is as you want.

He's a plug and play guy. He'll learn some things and physically mature a litte in the next few years (he's only 21) and be a good solid player.

People will see "1st round pick" and want him to be Tj Watt, when he's a 6-8 sack per year SDE playing solid run d.

It's fine to be a good player. Not everyone has to be an elite player.

He's a piece of what we needed to fix this defensive line. Stars and scrubs work out great if your stars continually perform at their level. When those stars ****ing suck....your entire line ****ing sucks.

[RunKC]

The guy may not have long arms but his hands are really ****ing powerful and he knows how to use them to control leverage.

Purdue EDGE George Karlaftis (#5) brings the goods when it comes to his power rushes.

He starts the rep with a great first step into his arc, he then gets great placement with his hands. He combines the speed and natural power to run this tackle back into his QB. Great rush. pic.twitter.com/U8OIySfHcg

— Nick Price (@PriceCheck3) December 6, 2021

He’s quicker than you’d think.

Power, leverage, and heavy hands make George Karlaftis a scary pass rusher. Was all over the QB when Purdue played Iowa and came away with a sack here thanks to a swipe-rip combo. pic.twitter.com/ktArE7fcWJ

— Bobby Football (@Rob__Paul) February 11, 2022

More nice handwork and a spin move!

George Karlaftis III with the spin move. If you beat the hands, you beat the man! #PassRush@TheGK3 earned Freshman All-American honors last season for #BoilerUp pic.twitter.com/WchY8nls3a

— DLineVids (@dlinevids1) April 26, 2020