The Kansas City Chiefs hosted a pair of players on visits and tryouts last Friday. Both players have since signed to the team’s practice squad.
When the team activated DB Tyrann Mathieu from the Reserve/COVID-19 list they made the transaction to sign former K-State LB Elijah Sullivan to the practice squad, releasing DB Shakur Brown in a corresponding move. On Monday, the team added former Baylor Bears men’s basketball star Mark Vital.
Vital announced that he’d officially joined the team on Twitter, posting a picture of him signing a contract to join the practices squad.
Glad to announce I am now part of the @Chiefs !! 🌍❤️ Never Give Up When There Is Adversity. #Chiefs pic.twitter.com/zNTP4jiTFO
— Mark Vital Jr. (@MarkVitalJr) September 13, 2021
After the signing with the Portland Trailblazers to play in the NBA Summer League, Vital revealed his intentions to shift his focus from professional basketball to play in the NFL. The 6-5 and 250-pound athlete played guard and forward as a college basketball player at Baylor, but will make the switch to tight end in the NFL.
At this point, Vital is nothing more than a developmental prospect. The Chiefs have four tight ends on the 53-man roster and unless there are a few injuries, he likely won’t be elevated. That said, Vital joins a long line of former basketball-to-tight-end converts in Kansas City. Tony Gonzalez, famously, played basketball in college. Then, more recently, Demetrius Harris and Ross Travis made the jump to the NFL after playing basketball in college.
In order to make room for Vital on the practice squad, the team released veteran WR Maurice Ffrench. He spent the 2020 season on the Chiefs’ practice squad after signing with the team as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Pittsburgh following the 2020 NFL draft.
