KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Chiefs signed free agent defensive end Alex Okafor on Thursday.
Okafor, 28, spent his last two seasons with the New Orleans Saints. He missed the final six games in 2017 with an Achilles' tendon injury bu returned in 2018 and started all 16 games, recording 36 tackles with four sacks from the right defensive end position.
Alex Okafor takes down Flacco for a 10-yard loss! #NOvsBAL pic.twitter.com/sOTgECMXol
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) October 21, 2018
Okafor's signing comes as the Chiefs make significant changes to their defense, including a change at defensive coordinator from Bob Sutton to Steve Spagnuolo, and the release of former All-Pro performers linebacker Justin Houston and Eric Berry.
Kansas City also traded linebacker Dee Ford to the San Francisco 49ers this week.
Okafor entered the league as a fourth-round pick by the Arizona Cardinals in 2013, He racked up 13 1/2 sacks in 42 games across four seasons in the desert before signing with the Saints in 2017.
During his first 10 games with New Orleans, Okafor totaled 43 tackles, 4 1/2 sacks and four passes defended. He's had nine quarterback hits each of the last two seasons.
The Chiefs also announced the signing of safety Tyrann Mathieu, who was a teammate with Okafor in Arizona, and former Dallas Cowboys linebacker Damien Wilson on Thursday.
We boutta have some fun
— Tyrann Mathieu (@Mathieu_Era) March 14, 2019
