The Kansas City Chiefs are placing a lot of faith in Omarr Norman-Lott to help bolster the defensive front over the next few years after investing a second-round choice to obtain him in the 2025 NFL Draft. But his ability to develop into a pivotal piece up front took a hit on Friday night in the team’s second preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks.

With less than a minute to go in the first quarter, Norman-Lott, who was earning considerable time against the Seahawks first-team offense on the first two drives of the game, went down with an ankle injury and had to leave the field.

Omarr Norman-Lott’s injury is putting a wrench into the development plan for him on the Chiefs defense.

Chiefs trainers were looking at Norman-Lott’s ankle on the sideline after he was visibly in pain on the field. The team later made it clear it was an ankle issue and that he was questionable to return to the game, but then put him back in the game in the second quarter.

Norman-Lott has been dealing with injury concerns throughout Chiefs training camp, which has made it difficult for him to find a rhythm up front with his teammates. That’s been frustrating for fans wanting to see what sort of disruption he can provide at the next level after putting up an impressive 18.9 percent pass-rush win rate at Tennessee a season ago.

The Chiefs selected Norman-Lott a bit earlier than draft analysts predicted, but the need for further help inside is a primary concern for the Chiefs’ defense. Not only has the team looked fairly thin inside, but the ceiling has been particularly low outside of Chris Jones.

Speaking of Jones, he is the engine of the team’s pass rush, but he was leaned on for a higher percentage of snaps played than ever before in 2025 at 83 percent.

That’s not a recipe for long-term success for a pass rusher who is 30 years old. Given the financial commitment to Jones, it makes sense why the Chiefs would be very interested in making sure he stays fresh (and finding other ways to get after the passer).

Here’s hoping Norman-Lott is okay for the long term, and the Chiefs seem to think so, given that he’s been trusted to go back into the game. The hopes are more long-term than anything, but these early reps in his career are vital all the same.