The Kansas City Chiefs were widely praised for their 2025 NFL Draft class. Most people raved about them getting offensive tackle Josh Simmons at the end of the first round, and people really loved the value of getting wideout Jalen Royals in the fourth round and running back Brashard Smith in the seventh round. If critics were looking for something to nitpick, it was typically the selection of defensive tackle Omarr Norman-Lott out of Tennessee in the second round.

It wasn’t that anyone thought Norman-Lott hadn’t shown NFL-caliber upside in college, but his limited number of snaps and slighter frame had many wondering if he was destined to be just a substitutional pass rusher. Those players are still valuable, but was the 63rd overall pick a little early to take a player like that? Lance Zierlein’s scouting report at NFL.com was pretty typical of a lot of write-ups you could find.

Here are a few quotes from Zierlein: “Norman-Lott is an undersized interior defender who will need to specialize in penetration and havoc creation in a one-gapping scheme…. His lack of size could hurt his draft slotting, but he has the potential to become a rotational defender and sub-package rusher.”

Dane Brugler’s famed The Beast draft guide had Norman-Lott as his 15th defensive tackle in this class and a borderline 3rd/4th-round pick, and the excellent KCSN Draft Guide had him as their 16th defensive tackle, graded as a 4th-round pick.

That’s not to say that Norman-Lott didn’t have his fans. He was a standout at the Senior Bowl and flashed real pass-rush upside at times, but there was enough out there about pick 63 being a little high for Norman-Lott that the overall reception to the pick was lukewarm at best.

It also didn’t help that Norman-Lott was the last of the Chiefs’ rookies to sign his contract, getting it signed just days before the first practices of training camp. This wasn’t his fault, due to the fact that the entire second round was delayed this year as teams and agents battled over what percentage of second-round picks’ contracts would be guaranteed. Still, it didn’t help his perception of being able to be a Day One contributor as a rookie.

However, now just days into training camp practices, Norman-Lott is turning heads and creating some buzz as he has received a ton of work with the first-string defense. That isn’t usually the case with rookies in defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo’s system. Spags typically picks veterans with lower upside who know the system over more talented players who don’t have it down yet.

Norman-Lott spoke to the media after practice on Friday and was asked about just that fact. “It’s an honor. I’ve just got to use them the right way. I’m just working on not messing up and playing hard.”

Nick Bolton gave his seal of approval on how Norman-Lott is doing during his press conference by saying, “He’s an intelligent guy. A lot of stuff is mental—not having mental mistakes. He’s trusting me, listening to the linebacker communications, giving us signals.”

On top of his encouraging early first-string reps, Norman-Lott also physically looks bigger than advertised. He weighed in at 291 pounds at the combine, but the Chiefs have him listed at 315 pounds. That’s a 24-pound difference, and based on pictures and early firsthand accounts, he looks closer to 315. If he can keep his same pass-rush upside at that size, that instantly changes some of those early concerns we saw in a lot of his scouting reports that viewed him as an undersized rotational pass rusher.

Now, before we get too excited, we should note that all of this is based on practices without full pads. Nothing is guaranteed at this point, and Norman-Lott could still struggle to hold up against the run—especially if asked to play a lot more snaps than he did in college. However, all the early reports are positive at this point. Hopefully, that continues when the Chiefs go full pads and full contact.

With Josh Simmons looking fully healthy, the Chiefs’ draft class may already be a win. But if Omarr Norman-Lott—the pick that was most scrutinized coming out of the draft—turns out to be well worth the 63rd overall pick, this could be another home-run group for Brett Veach.

Keep in mind, defensive tackles taken in this range have had a very high hit rate in recent years, so there is absolutely reason to get excited and believe that Omarr Norman-Lott will prove his doubters wrong and that the Chiefs nailed their second-round pick.