KANSAS CITY, Mo. — After his first game of the season, Charles Omenihu wanted to praise the two behind-the-scenes people in the Chiefs organization who helped him play against the rival Las Vegas Raiders last Friday: Tiffany Morton and Greg Carbin.
Omenihu, the sixth-year defensive end, spent most of those tedious, grueling days during his nine-month rehab with Morton, one of the Chiefs’ athletic trainers, and Carbin, the team’s assistant strength and conditioning trainer. When Omenihu felt discouraged or frustrated with what was necessary for him to return to the field after tearing the ACL in his right knee during the AFC Championship Game in January, he relied on the expertise of Morton and Carbin. Following Morton and Carbin’s instructions helped Omenihu to have an above-average performance against the Raiders.
“This is a class-A organization, allowing me to take the time to come back and do it the right way,” Omenihu said after the Chiefs’ victory. “(They gave) me the grace I’m not giving myself, so I can only just appreciate them and just try to keep stacking (games) and hopefully get back to how I was playing last year.”
Omenihu finished Friday’s game with one tackle, making a fourth-down stop. By advanced metrics, Omenihu was a positive addition to the Chiefs defense. He earned a 71 overall grade, according to Pro Football Focus, for generating pressure on Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell, playing multiple positions along the defensive line and even being an effective defender in coverage.
Omenihu was supposed to play just 20 snaps, a limit the coaching staff felt was wise for him because he didn’t have training camp or preseason games to test his conditioning. But Omenihu played 34 snaps, surprising Joe Cullen, the veteran defensive line coach known for his intense teaching style and pass-rushing tactics.
“My motivation is coming from people that think I’m not going to be the same player, underestimating my work and just how much I put into this,” Omenihu said. “It’s a very personal thing. When I left the field last year, I was on the highest of highs. I’m trying to get back to that.”
Charles Omenihu on his 2024 debut and return from injury. #Chiefskingdom pic.twitter.com/LGs1Mv0bRs
— 96.5 The Fan (@TheFan965) November 30, 2024
Early in the third quarter, the Raiders faced fourth-and-inches on the Chiefs’ 30-yard line. Instead of kicking a field goal, Raiders coach Antonio Pierce kept the offense on the field. Pierce’s decision should’ve meant that Omenihu returned to the sideline. But the Raiders made a quick substitution. When O’Connell handed the ball to Ameer Abdullah, the running back was hit by linebacker Nick Bolton and then wrapped up and brought down by Omenihu for no gain. Omenihu used his quickness to evade the blocking attempt by left tackle Kolton Miller.
“Coach Joe was kind of nervy, he must have thought I forgot the plays or something,” a smiling Omenihu said of Cullen. “I know my role was going to be just trying to rush (the quarterback), but I got out there and I ran the play and made a play. I’m happy. It was a good stop.”
Before the game, the Chiefs ranked 26th in the league with 21 sacks. One way Omenihu helped the Chiefs’ pass rush against the Raiders was by lining up next to Chris Jones, whether as a defensive end or a defensive tackle.
“It was good to get him back,” Jones said Thursday. “He worked his butt off to be back. He looked really, really good, so we’re excited about that. He’ll bring a lot of versatility to our pass rush.”
Omenihu’s positional flexibility allowed Jones to rush more often from the edge, notching his two sacks of O’Connell from that position. Omenihu was also on the field, as part of the traditional four-man rush, when defensive end George Karlaftis sacked O’Connell for a 15-yard loss to knock the Raiders out of field goal range.
“Sacks come with chaos, when the quarterback is having somebody flash across their face,” Omenihu said. “I had good rushes. I want to finish. I’m just extremely hard on myself. I didn’t rehab for nine months to just go out there and play and punch grass with my cleats. I want to make plays.”
GEORGE GETS ONE TOO 💪 pic.twitter.com/QqFS8eR9X3
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) November 29, 2024
The Chiefs will be thrilled if Omenihu returns to the form he showed in the second half of last season for the final five games of 2024, starting Sunday night against the Los Angeles Chargers.
“He’s not one who is short on confidence,” safety Justin Reid said of Omenihu. “He’s such a fun guy to be on the field with because he backs it up. You want your best players to be out on the field. He’s going to add some pass-rushing help that is definitely going to help us down the stretch.”
Last season, Omenihu had seven sacks, 11 quarterback hits and two forced fumbles in 11 games. Omenihu created an impressive strip-sack in the victory over the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game before sustaining his season-ending injury.
The next time Omenihu ran on a football field was two weeks later when he celebrated from the sideline after the Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers in overtime of Super Bowl LVIII to become the NFL’s first back-to-back champion in two decades.
“It was beautiful,” Omenihu said. “I was here through the process of getting there, and to see us win the Super Bowl, I still felt like I was a part of it. I got my Super Bowl ring. Now, it’s an onward quest to continue to build on this season.”
THAT’S OUT. THAT’S OURS!!!! pic.twitter.com/6MtsztDjr0
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) January 28, 2024
Before practice Wednesday, Omenihu shared that the toughest part of his rehab came during training camp in July and August when he was trying to rebuild the strength in his right knee. He said the most painful part was when he had to use a blood flow restriction machine on his right leg.
“That s— hurt like hell,” Omenihu said. “I think now that I’ve gone through this — and I pray to God that I never, ever go through this again and I would not wish this on anybody — around month eight is where I knew that I was going to be good.
“There’s no situation that’s too big that God can’t get you through. I just relied on that and that I’ve been in tough times before. The motivation (came) from (Morton) and (Carbin), too, just talking me through whenever I felt like I didn’t want to do the rehab.”
Omenihu continued his postgame routine from last season. Starting Saturday, Omenihu said, he rewatched his performance five times to help diagnose the techniques he did well and note things to improve on, such as his footwork and certain pass-rushing moves, ahead of the Chiefs’ game against the Chargers.
“Did I meet my own personal expectations?” Omenihu said of his performance. “Probably not, but I’ve got to give myself grace. I haven’t played in 308 days, so it’s been a long time. You’ve got to be realistic, but my foot is on the gas, man.”
(Photo: Jay Biggerstaff / Imagn Images)
