{"id":163295,"date":"2026-03-12T22:56:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T22:56:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=163295"},"modified":"2026-03-12T22:56:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T22:56:13","slug":"%f0%9f%9a%a8-breaking-kansas-city-chiefs-reach-verbal-agreement-with-former-lions-dl-star-on-24m-deal-per-espn-%f0%9f%94%b4%f0%9f%94%a5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=163295","title":{"rendered":"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Kansas City Chiefs Reach Verbal Agreement With Former Lions DL Star on $24M Deal, per ESPN \ud83d\udd34\ud83d\udd25"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"208\" data-end=\"342\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy-img\" src=\"https:\/\/lionswire.usatoday.com\/gcdn\/authoring\/authoring-images\/2025\/05\/12\/SLIO\/83587720007-2187600669.jpg?crop=5999,3375,x0,y200&amp;width=660&amp;height=371&amp;format=pjpg&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"360\" height=\"240\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"208\" data-end=\"342\">Kansas City, MO \u2014 The\u00a0<strong data-start=\"230\" data-end=\"252\">Kansas City Chiefs<\/strong>\u00a0are reportedly making a powerful move to reinforce their defensive line this offseason.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"344\" data-end=\"481\">According to\u00a0<strong data-start=\"357\" data-end=\"365\">ESPN<\/strong>, the Chiefs have reached a\u00a0<strong data-start=\"393\" data-end=\"431\">verbal agreement worth $24 million<\/strong>\u00a0with veteran defensive tackle\u00a0<strong data-start=\"462\" data-end=\"478\">D. J. Reader<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"483\" data-end=\"587\">The move could become one of Kansas City\u2019s most impactful defensive additions ahead of the new season.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"589\" data-end=\"758\">Reader most recently played with the\u00a0<strong data-start=\"626\" data-end=\"667\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">Detroit Lions<\/span><\/strong>, where he established himself as one of the league\u2019s most dependable interior defenders.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"760\" data-end=\"870\">Known for his strength and physical presence, Reader has consistently been a dominant force against the run.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"872\" data-end=\"1002\">His ability to absorb blockers and close rushing lanes makes him a key asset for teams looking to control the line of scrimmage.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1004\" data-end=\"1118\">The Chiefs\u2019 front office has been actively searching for reinforcements along the defensive line this offseason.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1004\" data-end=\"1118\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy-img\" src=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_333,w_6000,h_3375\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images\/GettyImages\/mmsport\/53\/01j8mx49k14890wtzrqh.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"360\" height=\"240\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1120\" data-end=\"1233\">Adding Reader could provide the stability and toughness Kansas City needs in the middle of its defensive front.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1235\" data-end=\"1343\">Sources say the coaching staff believes his experience will immediately strengthen the team\u2019s run defense.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1345\" data-end=\"1460\">Reader\u2019s leadership and veteran mindset could also play an important role in mentoring younger defensive players.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1462\" data-end=\"1574\">For Kansas City, the potential signing signals a clear intention to build a tougher and more physical defense.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1576\" data-end=\"1703\">If the agreement becomes official, Reader is expected to take on a significant role anchoring the Chiefs\u2019 defensive interior.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1705\" data-end=\"1826\">Fans in Kansas City are already buzzing about the possibility of seeing his powerful playing style in a Chiefs uniform.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1828\" data-end=\"1927\">A dominant run defender arriving in Kansas City.<br data-start=\"1876\" data-end=\"1879\" \/>A defensive line gaining much-needed strength.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1929\" data-end=\"2034\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">And the Chiefs continuing their push to build a defense capable of competing at the highest level. \ud83d\udd34\ud83d\udd25\ud83c\udfc8<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kansas City, MO \u2014 The\u00a0Kansas City Chiefs\u00a0are reportedly making a powerful move to reinforce their defensive line this offseason. According to\u00a0ESPN, the Chiefs have reached a\u00a0verbal agreement&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":163296,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-163295","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Kansas City Chiefs Reach Verbal Agreement With Former Lions DL Star on $24M Deal, per ESPN \ud83d\udd34\ud83d\udd25 - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=163295\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\ud83d\udea8 BREAKING: Kansas City Chiefs Reach Verbal Agreement With Former Lions DL Star on $24M Deal, per ESPN \ud83d\udd34\ud83d\udd25 - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Kansas City, MO \u2014 The\u00a0Kansas City Chiefs\u00a0are reportedly making a powerful move to reinforce their defensive line this offseason. 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