The Chiefs finally reclaim Khalen Saunders, and his return could change everything on the field.QQ

Khalen Saunders cleared waivers after being released by the Jacksonville Jaguars.

From the moment Khalen Saunders was made available to interested teams after his release from the Jacksonville Jaguars earlier this week, most of Chiefs Kingdom has been waiting and watching for the outcome—to learn where the defensive tackle would land next. On Friday, it was made official that the lineman had cleared waivers.

The Jaguars released Saunders on Thursday, an admission that they weren’t going to change their mind about leaving him as a healthy inactive on game days. Saunders was the return on a preseason trade that sent offensive lineman Luke Fortner to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for the veteran defensive tackle. Yet instead of bolstering the defensive front, Saunders was relegated to the bench.

While Saunders has plenty of experience in the NFL, teams still had to submit waiver claims for him as they would for a newer player, given the timing of his release from Jacksonville. Saunders is a vested veteran, but even those must go through the waiver wire before hitting free agency if they’re set free after the league’s trade deadline. This year, that date was November 4.

Khalen Saunders cleared waivers after being released by the Jacksonville Jaguars.

While Saunders has yet to find an official place to land, the Chiefs have to be considered among the favorites, given the need up front and their familiarity with one another. The Chiefs lost second-round pick Omarr Norman-Lott to ACL injury in the first half of the season, and will be reliant upon aging veterans to carry them through the rest of the season and beyond. Those names include Mike Pennel and Derrick Nnadi, among others.

Saunders first entered the NFL as the Chiefs’ third-round choice in the 2019 NFL Draft out of Western Illinois. General manager Brett Veach rolled the dice in that draft when taking Saunders, knowing the leap from the FCS level to the NFL is a massive one. Still, Saunders’ reputation as “The Aaron Donald of the FCS” was enough to interest the Chiefs.

Over the course of four seasons in K.C., Saunders played in 38 games, including 16 in his final season with the team—a season in which he set a career high of 3.5 sacks. For the Chiefs, he’d represent another vet familiar enough with Steve Spagnuolo’s demands to make a difference in short order. It’d also give him a chance to rebuild some value after failing to earn any real playing time in Jacksonville.

Now that Saunders has cleared waivers, he can sign with any team as a free agent.