Chiefs select Ashton Gillotte in Third Round of 2025 NFL Draft

The defensive end is the second Louisville football player to be selected in this year's draft.

Nov 9, 2023; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Louisville Cardinals defensive lineman Ashton Gillotte (9) sacks Virginia Cavaliers quarterback Anthony Colandrea (10) during the first quarter at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images | Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Ashton Gillotte is heading to one of the NFL's top Super Bowl contenders.

The Louisville defensive end has been selected by the Kansas City Chiefs with the No. 66 overall pick in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft.

Gillotte is the second former Cardinal to be selected in this year's draft, following quarterback Tyler Shough, who went No. 40 overall to the Saints. He is also the sixth player to be drafted under head coach Jeff Brohm, and the school's 142nd all-time NFL Draft selection.

While the 6-foot-3, 275-pound edge rusher had a little bit of a slow statistical start to his senior campaign, he still managed to be one of the most impactful defensive linemen in the ACC by regular season's end. Starting every regular season game, he finished with 43 total tackles (23 solo), 10 for loss and 4.5 sacks.

The Boca Raton, Fla. native's best season came as a junior in 2023. Starting all 14 games, Gillotte collected 14.5 tackles for loss, 11.0 sacks, three forced fumbles and 45.0 tackles overall. His sack total led the ACC, was good for eighth in the FBS, and was ninth on the single-season sack list in Louisville history.

As you can imagine, Gillotte collected plenty of accolades for his standout junior campaign. He earned First-Team All-ACC honors and was the runner-up in ACC Defensive Player of the Year voting, while also earning Second-Team All-American nods from Walter Camp, USA TODAY, Sports Illustrated and The Athletic.

Gillotte is one of the Cardinals' top pass rushers in program history. Playing in 51 career games while starting 37 games - all over the last three seasons - his 41.0 career tackles for loss ranks fifth in school history, while his 26.5 sacks comes in at sixth.

More Cardinals Stories