Kansas City Chiefs rookie Ashton Gillotte explains the significance of his jersey number
The Kansas City Chiefs selected defensive lineman Ashton Gillotte in the third round with the 66th pick in last weekend's draft, solidifying another high-potential player for coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. On Saturday, he met with the media at rookie camp and shared the story behind his jersey number.
"Obviously, I started my college career in it, and it wasn't my first choice because obviously in high school I played in (number) nine," said Gillotte, "but I think going back to that is kind of symbolic in a lot of ways and meaningful to me just to have the option to go back into that number. Started my college career like that, so I'm going to start my NFL career like that too, so it's a good omen."
The No. 97 jersey was last assigned to Felix Anudike-Uzomah, who has since switched to No. 91 to start the 2025 season. During his last season at Louisville, Gillotte earned Second-team All-ACC honors. He led the Cardinals with 10 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks and started 12 games with 43 total tackles.
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