Charles Omenihu says he'll be ready to play in Super Bowl LVIII

The Kansas City Chiefs are once again headed to the Super Bowl. After taking down the Baltimore Ravens, Chiefs defensive end Charles Omenihu made one thing perfectly clear – he’s playing in Las Vegas. The former Longhorns star suffered a knee injury during the first half of Sunday’s conference championship game but he doesn’t intend to miss the Big Game in two weeks.

“I know I’m not done. I’m playing. I’m straight,” Omenihu said, via video from Aaron Ladd of KSHB41. “Do I look like somebody who’s not going to play in the Super Bowl? No, I don’t. I’m good. Come on, bro.”

The Chiefs defensive star will undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the full severity of his injury but his attitude post-game was encouraging. Omenihu suffered the injury with about three minutes remaining before halftime. He had one tackle and one sack before leaving the game.

Luckily for Kansas City, they didn’t need the edge rusher to end the Ravens’ season. The Chiefs won 17-10 after getting to quarterback Lamar Jackson four times for sacks.

Omenihu planning to play vs 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII

Omenihu has been a major force on the Chiefs defensive line this season with 28 total tackles, seven sacks and two forced fumbles. He is in his first season in Kansas City after playing last season for the San Francisco 49ers. A former fifth-round pick out of Texas, he played his first two NFL seasons with the Houston Texans.

Omenihu played the 2022 season with the San Francisco 49ers before signing a two-year deal with the Chiefs in March. He signed for $16 million. Due to a suspension in the offseason, he had to miss the Chiefs’ first six games, which were against the Lions, Jaguars, Bears, Jets, Vikings and Broncos. Kansas City only dropped the first of those six games without their edge rusher.

The Chiefs are now headed to their fourth Super Bowl appearance in five seasons. No matter how many times they make it to the championship game, Patrick Mahomes told reporters they won’t take the opportunity for granted.

“You don’t take it for granted,” Mahomes said after his 30-of-39 passing performance. “You never know how many you’re going to get to or if you’re going to get to any. So it truly is special just to do it with these guys after what we’ve been through all season long. Guys coming together, it really is special. But I told them, ‘The job’s not done.’ Our job now is to prepare ourselves to play a good football team in the Super Bowl and try to get that ring.”