South Carolina’s T.J. Sanders can bring explosiveness to Chiefs’ defensive line

The idea of Sanders playing next to Chris Jones could be intriguing to the Chiefs.

The Kansas City Chiefs need bodies in their defensive line room.

At defensive tackle, the Chiefs only have two proven options on the roster: soon-to-be 34-year-old Mike Pennel at nose tackle and Chris Jones. The Chiefs have more continuity at defensive end with Charles Omenihu, George Karlaftis, Mike Danna and Felix Anudike-Uzomah in his third year. Still, they could use more juice at defensive end as well.

Because they lack depth in the room, it is easier to draft players because the Chiefs don’t have to chase body types. With little depth in the reservoir, the Chiefs can look at different skill sets because they don’t have anyone above them who does the same thing.

What I want Kansas City to prioritize is getting to the quarterback more often. Last season, the Chiefs’ pass rush wasn’t great. Jones was still fantastic, Tershawn Wharton had a great season and Karlaftis was solid, but outside of Jones, the Chiefs lacked players who could get quick pressures. They have a need for more explosive pass rushers, especially with Wharton gone.

If they’re looking for pass rush on the interior, I’d say South Carolina’s T.J. Sanders might be one of the better values available.

Here’s what you need to know about Sanders:

Background

Coming out of high school, Sanders was a three-star recruit. His recruiting profile had him listed at 6-5 and 275 lbs., which is more of a defensive end body type. Sanders had some decent Power 5 offers from Indiana, Tennessee, South Carolina and Duke — but nothing from the elite programs. Sanders ended up choosing South Carolina, where he played four years.

Sanders would redshirt his freshman season and not play much his first two seasons, but he’s been a breakout over the past two years. In 2023, the flashes of pass-rush potential started to show. In 260 pass-rush snaps, Sanders had 27 pressures and five sacks — a solid 10.4% pressure rate, which is good for a 20-year-old.

His best season was last year. Sanders had 255 pass rush reps in 2024 and increased his pressures to 33 with five sacks again — a 12.9% pressure rate. Sanders was voted second-team All-SEC by the Associated Press and won the College Football Network’s SEC Interior Defender of the Year award.

Sanders is more of a pass rusher than a run defender. In 2023, he played 211 run snaps vs. 260 pass rush snaps. In 2024, it was 212 run snaps vs. 255 pass rush snaps. Sanders had his usage limited on early downs and then would come in on third downs and wreak havoc.

Sanders came in at the Combine at 6’3 7/8” and 297 lbs with over 33-inch arms — good numbers for a player thought to be undersized. His 4.95 40-yard dash with a 1.67 10-yard split are great numbers. A 31.5” vertical jump with a 9’4 broad jump are strong explosiveness scores. I thought Sanders might do a bit better in the agility, but his agility times were still solid.

Strengths and weaknesses

As I mentioned, Sanders was primarily used as a pass rusher in college, and for good reason: he’s quite good at it.

From an athletic perspective, Sanders has the elite tools to be a pass rusher. His first step is incredibly dynamic, blowing past blockers to get into the backfield. Sanders can use a quick first step and a swim move to get into the backfield and get instant production. His agility is quite strong as well, being able to win with dip and bend or cross-facing offensive linemen on either shoulder with his agility.

Sanders has a deep bag of pass-rush moves. He utilizes a good swim move, but his best move is his two-hand swipe. His hands are quick and have underrated power, and with his agility, he can cross an entire gap in one fluid motion and get upfield. Sanders can rush from the nose tackle spot or 3-technique. In fact, I think with development, he could rush from the edge with his explosiveness and fluidity.

One underrated trait about Sanders is his power. Sanders isn’t huge, but his explosiveness and underrated hand strength allow him to explode into blockers and knock them backwards. As a change-up move, he has it in his bag.

Now, for weaknesses, it’s run defense. South Carolina rarely made Sanders play on early downs. He’s not a nose tackle and will get pushed around some in the run game. I don’t find his reps to be terrible, but the lack of opportunity suggests that their coaching staff didn’t trust him to do that.

How he fits with the Chiefs

Now, people might question his fit next to Jones. Yes, I doubt they can play together besides on third downs. However, I’m not bothered by this.

Defensive tackles need time to develop. Rookies rarely need to play 60 snaps. The Chiefs would need around 30 snaps from Sanders. If 10-15 come on third downs and 10-15 come in spell of Jones at 3-technique, you can get plenty of reps for Sanders. Giving Jones more breathers is a priority for me, and Sanders is a good enough pass rusher to give the Chiefs some juice when Jones rests.

Like I mentioned, I think Sanders can rush from anywhere — including the edge, which I like to see more. He can rush at nose tackle, too, and I think stunts with him and Jones would be awesome. Having two elite athletes as pass rushers can go a long way — look at Milton Williams and Jalen Carter for the Eagles. I think the Chiefs could replicate that.

The bottom line

Sanders will get pushed down the board in this awesome defensive line class, but he’s very underrated in my estimation. Teams are desperate for pass-rush juice, and Sanders is one of the better pass rushers in the class. His athletic tools and pass-rush bag combined make him a top-50 prospect in my eyes.

I think Sanders will likely go between 60-90, so the Chiefs will have two opportunities to take him, potentially, and if they do, I love the idea of playing him and Jones together.

Grade: Round 2