The Kansas City Chiefs aren't the likely destination, but the fact that tight end Jody Fortson is thinking about another shot at the National Football League is noteworthy all the same.
Per his agents, Fortson has been "fully cleared" to return to the field and is actively searching for a new home for his seventh NFL season. It feels a bit shocking to think that Fortson has been around the league that long, since it feels like he's spent as much time on injured reserve as he has active rosters to date.
After signing with the Chiefs as a rookie free agent following the 2019 NFL Draft out of Valdosta State, Fortson beat the long odds against him (or any undrafted player) to make the team's practice squad. He stuck around for a couple of years before earning his first official snaps in 2021 with 5 catches in 6 games.
Former Chiefs tight end Jody Fortson is looking for a new home after returning from a torn ACL in '24.
Fortson's finest season to date came in 2022, when he played in 13 games for the Chiefs and caught 9 passes for 108 yards and 2 touchdowns. Fortson played a career-high 184 snaps that season and another 181 on special teams, but an elbow injury would end his season prematurely. The Chiefs would go on to bring him back in 2023 as well, but Fortson missed the entire season on injured reserve.
In 2024, Fortson signed a one-year deal in free agency with the Miami Dolphins. However, he was released before the regular season began. The Chiefs signed him to their practice squad, and he earned a promotion to the active roster before a torn ACL would once again halt his season.
While the Chiefs make the most sense for a return for Fortson, the Chiefs are healthy and stocked at the position. Travis Kelce and Noah Gray are the obvious players atop the depth chart with Robert Tonyan locked in as the third tight end. The Chiefs also have 2024 fourth-round pick Jared Wiley on the active roster as a healthy scratch each week.
Perhaps the Chiefs might want to add Fortson to the practice squad as a known commodity, but Tre Watson is hoping that's not the case. Watson has been hanging on as a former undrafted prospect out of Texas A&M. The Chiefs also have Jake Briningstool stashed on injured reserve since the start of the season.
Even if Kansas City is unwilling to offer Fortson a place to land, the veteran tight end has overcome significant hurdles to get to this point. The fact that he's still around and searching for work in 2025 is a testament to both his talent and hard work. Whether that will manifest with a new role remains to be seen.