The Chiefs made a small but telling roster shuffle Monday, adding defensive end Niles King while waiving wide receiver Jeff Caldwell with an injury designation as they move toward the NFL’s 53-man deadline.
Caldwell’s exit closes the book, at least for now, on one of Kansas City’s more intriguing rookie additions. The former Cincinnati receiver arrived as a rookie free agent with eye-popping athletic traits, including a 10.0 RAS, and draft analysts had pegged him as a potential steal because of that size-strength-speed combination. But the buzz never really translated into traction during minicamp or training camp.
The production profile never matched the physical tools. Caldwell had just one season at Cincinnati after transferring from Lindenwood, and his numbers with the Bearcats were modest: 32 catches, 478 yards, and 6 touchdowns. Kansas City gave him the spring and summer to develop, but he has been sidelined for several days and did not play in Saturday’s preseason game against the Buccaneers.
Waiving him also opens the door for another team to claim him. If he clears waivers, the Chiefs can then choose to place him on injured reserve.
King steps in to give Kansas City some needed edge depth before Friday night’s preseason finale against the Seattle Seahawks at Arrowhead. The Chiefs are already thin up front without second-year edge Ashton Gillotte and Tyreke Smith, so the move gives them one more body to evaluate.
King comes to Kansas City as a rookie free agent after going undrafted this spring out of San Diego State. He transferred to the Aztecs in 2025 after spending years at Grand Valley State, where he totaled 20 sacks in 34 games.
At SDSU a year ago, he posted 10 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. Dane Brugler of The Athletic ranked King as his 65th defensive end availabel in the '26 draft class.
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