Defensive end Charles Omenihu missed the beginning and the end of the Chiefs’ season, but he thinks he did enough in between to earn a new deal.
Omenihu came back from a six-game Personal Conduct Policy suspension to record seven regular season sacks and he recorded another while forcing a fumble in the AFC Championship Game, but he did not play in the Super Bowl win over the 49ers because of a torn ACL. Omenihu has had surgery on that injury and he’ll be rehabbing while also making his case for a new contract.
The push started with social media posts that hinted at his desire and it continued on NFL Network Monday with a more pointed answer to a question about whether he feels he’s positioned himself for another pact.
“I think I did, to be honest,” Omenihu said. “Like you said, seven sacks in 11 games and then the sack in the championship game to kind of spark off the wave of defensive plays. Finished second on the team in sacks and didn’t have the first six games to catch up with George [Karlaftis] and Chris [Jones]. I think I did, I think the tape speaks for itself. I think I showed dominant run play and then with the pass rush, inside and outside and just winning one-on-ones, creating turnovers, being the spark and, like, the energy plays they wanted me to be when I got there.”
Omenihu is signed through the 2024 season with a base salary of $6.74 million and a cap number of $10.97 million. An extension would likely bring that cap hit down, but it’s unclear if the Chiefs are thinking about anything on that front as they wait for Omenihu to return to full speed.
