Grading Tonga's Addition to Chiefs’ D-Line (and Backfield)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Brett Veach had a great day on Monday, but Khyiris Tonga had a better afternoon at the AFC championship game in Denver.

Kansas City wasn’t there for the first time since 2017, but Tonga was. The 6-2, 335-pound nose tackle ate up Luke Wattenberg like a snow cone in, dropping the Denver center into R.J. Harvey’s lap for a 3-yard loss. The dominant fourth-quarter play led to a Broncos punt in New England’s 10-7 victory.

DT Khyiris Tonga is reportedly departing from the Patriots for a 3 year/$21M deal with the Chiefs.

Tonga totaled 24 tackles and 2 tackles for loss with NE in the ‘25 regular season, while recording 7 tackles and a sack during the playoffs. pic.twitter.com/9TxKGKv0S6
— Jack Aylmer (@Jack_Aylmer) March 9, 2026

Earlier in that snowy second half, Tonga reported eligible as a fullback in a tie game for the Patriots’ offense. With New England facing fourth-and-1 from Denver’s 8-yard line, he lined up as a sniffer, in a four-point stance behind left guard, and blocked Zach Allen to give Drake Maye enough room for the first down. The Patriots wound up kicking the game-winning field goal.

The grade: B-plus

Those two plays are a small sample of what Tonga can do for the Chiefs. And because of what Steve Spagnuolo needs him to do on early downs – just as he turned that first-and-10 into a second-and-13 against Denver – his signing gets a strong grade. Give the Chiefs a B-plus for signing.

chris jone — Nov 2, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones (95) pressures Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) in the fourth quarter at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Tonga won’t be on the field a ton – even though he had 15 offensive snaps last year with New England, including postseason. But the Chiefs don’t need him to be. They need him to muddy the middle and free up Nick Bolton to put a helmet on ball-carriers.

And when opponents want to come out firing, like the Chargers did with their quick and efficient passing game in the Brazil season-opener last September, Tonga can disrupt the pocket. While he enjoyed a fantastic championship game against Denver, he scored only a 54.6 rushing grade from Pro Football Focus last season, No. 66 among 134 interior linemen last season.

Splits against run and pass

But he also ranked 18th against the pass (among those 134 players last year). That combined with Chris Jones this season would be a lethal combination, especially when Spagnuolo wants to move Jones along the line.

The knock against Tonga is his age. He turns 30 before the Chiefs reach training camp in July. His body is fairly intact, however, partly because he spent his first two years out of high school were spent on a Mormon mission – in Wichita, a few hours west of Arrowhead Stadium. He was a 21-year-old freshman at BYU in 2017, and he was almost 25 when the Bears took him in the seventh round of the 2021 draft.