Laurent Duvernay-Tardif

Laurent Duvernay-Tardif CQ (French: [lɔʁɑ̃ dyvɛʁne taʁdif]; born February 11, 1991) is a Canadian gridiron football guard for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Chiefs in the sixth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played university football at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He is the fourth medical school graduate to play in the NFL.[1][2]

Laurent Duvernay-Tardif
CQ
Duvernay-Tardif in the 2017 NFL season.
No. 76 – Kansas City Chiefs
Position:Guard
Personal information
Born: (1991-02-11) February 11, 1991
Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Quebec
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:321 lb (146 kg)
Career information
High school:Collège Saint-Hilaire
(Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Quebec)
University:McGill
NFL Draft:2014 / Round: 6 / Pick: 200
CFL draft:2014 / Round: 3 / Pick: 19
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2019
Games played:60
Games started:57
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Early life

Duvernay-Tardif was born in Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Quebec and grew up in Montreal. He started playing football at age 14, until his family went on a year long sailing trip to the Bahamas. After their return, he resumed playing football at age 16 for his high school. His native language is French.

University career

Duvernay-Tardif attended McGill University, where he was member of the McGill Redmen football team from 2010 to 2013. As a senior, he won the J. P. Metras Trophy, recognizing the Most Outstanding Lineman in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (now U Sports) system, and was named an All-Canadian for the second consecutive season.[3]

He balanced university football with medical school, prolonging his studies over eight years. In a 2014 article in Sports Illustrated, Joan Niesen said that he "was practicing just once a week—and he was still the best college (sic) player in Canada."[4][lower-alpha 1]

Professional career

Pre-draft

On December 12, 2013, it was announced that Duvernay-Tardif had accepted his invitation to play in the 2014 East-West Shrine Game.[5] On January 18, 2014, Duvernay-Tardif played in the 2014 East-West Shrine Game and was part of Jerry Glanville's East team that defeated the West 23-13. His performance at the East-West Shrine Game helped improve his draft stock.[6] Duvernay-Tardif did not receive an invitation to the NFL Scouting Combine. On March 27, 2014, Duvernay-Tardif held a personal pro day in Montreal that was attended by nine NFL teams and four Canadian Football League (CFL) teams.[7] He attended pre-draft visits with multiple teams, including the San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, Miami Dolphins, Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills, and Green Bay Packers. He also participated at a private workout for the Philadelphia Eagles.[8] At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Duvernay-Tardif was projected to be drafted anywhere from the third to fifth round by NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked as the 12th best offensive tackle prospect in the draft by DraftScout.com.[9]

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 5 in
(1.96 m)		 298 lb
(135 kg)		 5.08 s 4.59 s 7.30 s 32 in
(0.81 m)		 9 ft 6 in
(2.90 m)		 34 reps
All values from Personal Pro Day[10]

CFL Draft

In the CFL's Amateur Scouting Bureau final rankings, Duvernay-Tardif was ranked as the best eligible player for the 2014 CFL Draft, a position he held throughout the entirety of the season.[11] However, due to the uncertainty as to his availability as a result of his selection in the NFL Draft, he fell in the draft. He was drafted by the Calgary Stampeders in the third round (19th overall).[12]

Kansas City Chiefs

2014

The Kansas City Chiefs selected Duvernay-Tardif in the sixth round (200th overall) of the 2014 NFL Draft. Duvernay-Tardif was the 15th offensive tackle drafted in 2014.[13] Since the inception of the NFL Draft, Duvernay-Tardif is the tenth player to be chosen from a Canadian university.[14]

On May 14, 2014, the Kansas City Chiefs signed Duvernay-Tardif to a four-year, $2.34 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $100,300.[15][16]

Throughout training camp, Duvernay-Tardif competed to be a starting guard against Zach Fulton, Jeffrey Linkenbach, Rishaw Johnson, Mike McGlynn, and Rokevious Watkins.[17] Head coach Andy Reid named Duvernay-Tardif the fifth offensive guard on the depth chart to start the regular season, behind Jeff Allen, Zach Fulton, Jeff Linkenbach, and Mike McGlynn.[18]

2015

On September 13, 2015, Duvernay-Tardif made his first career start for the Chiefs in the season opener against the Houston Texans. He went on to play all 16 games with 13 starts for the Chiefs in 2015.

2016

In the 2016 season, Duvernay-Tardif started all 14 games he played in at right guard for the Chiefs.

2017

On February 28, 2017, the Kansas City Chiefs signed Duvernay-Tardif to a five-year, $42.36 million contract that includes $20.20 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $10 million.[16][19]

2018

Duvernay-Tardif started the first five games of the 2018 season at right guard before suffering a fractured fibula in Week 5.[20] He was placed on injured reserve on October 9. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said he will not be out for the season and will be reactivated at some point later in the season.[21] However, his injury was worse than originally thought[22], and he didn't start practicing again until the last week of the schedule.[23] He was activated off injured reserve on January 15, 2019, prior to the Chiefs AFC Championship matchup against the New England Patriots.[24]

2019

In 2019, Duvernay-Tardif played 14 games. On February 2, 2020, the Chiefs went on to win Super Bowl LIV, their first championship in 50 years.[25]

2020

On April 22, 2020, the Chiefs restructured Duvernay-Tardiff’s contract to free up salary cap space.[26]

Personal life

Duvernay-Tardif is the fourth NFL player to have graduated from medical school, and as of the 2018 season, the only active player.[27] He graduated from McGill University Faculty of Medicine in May 2018 with a Doctor of Medicine and Master of Surgery (M.D., C.M.). He primarily studied during the off-season prior to mandatory off-season workouts.[28] He had the support of the Chiefs coaching staff, especially head coach Andy Reid, whose mother also graduated from McGill's medical school.[29] Following his graduation, he petitioned the NFL to add the title "M.D." on the back of his jersey. The league denied his request, prompting fans and writers to criticize the league's decision.[30] He has not completed any postgraduate medical training. Duvernay-Tardif provided the convocation address at McGill's 2020 graduation ceremony

During the 2018 offseason, Duvernay-Tardif worked as a feature reporter for the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) during its coverage of the 2018 Winter Olympics.[29]

Duvernay-Tardif has been working with the developers of Shockbox, a device that is placed inside of football helmets to measure the impacts received on the field. He says that he hopes that his work will help to prevent concussions in football.[14]

In 2019, Duvernay-Tardif was made a Knight of the National Order of Quebec.[31]

Duvernay-Tardif is the grandson of former Quebec cabinet minister Guy Tardif.[32]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Duvernay-Tardif wanted to help combat the virus outbreak and returned to his hometown in Canada to work at a long-term care facility to assist.[33]

See also

Footnotes
  1. In American English, "college" is the generic term for postsecondary undergraduate education, regardless of an institution's formal name, or the types of degrees awarded. See College#United States for more details.

References
  1. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/super-bowl-win-laurent-duvernay-tardif-1.5449533
  2. https://www.wbur.org/onlyagame/2018/09/07/medical-school-mccoll-doctor-football
  3. "Awards piling up for McGill medical student and football player Laurent Duvernay-Tardif". Archived from the original on May 12, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  4. Niesen, Joan (March 24, 2014). "Heal Thyself". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 22, 2014.
  5. "McGill's Duvernay-Tardif, Manitoba's Gill invited to Shrine Game". presto-en.usports.ca. December 12, 2013. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  6. "2014 NFL Draft: Meet Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, Canada's top prospect". sbnation.com. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  7. "McGill offensive lineman Duvernay-Tardif looking forward to NFL draft". Canada.com. May 6, 2014. Retrieved June 22, 2014.
  8. "Canada's top NFL prospect juggles pre-draft visits with ER internship". torontosun.com. April 27, 2014. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  9. "Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, DS #12 OT, McGill (Canada)". draftscout.com. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  10. "Duvernay-Tardiff Pro Day Attracts a Crowd". CFL.ca. March 27, 2014. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  11. "Final Scouting Bureau rankings revealed". Archived from the original on April 24, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  12. "Laurent Duvernay-Tardif falls to 19th overall to Calgary". cfl.ca. Retrieved May 13, 2014.
  13. Canadian OL Duvernay-Tardif Drafted by Chiefs in Sixth Round
  14. "McGill medical student chosen in NFL draft". CTV News Montreal. Retrieved June 22, 2014.
  15. "Chiefs sign Laurent Duvernay-Tardif". profootballtalk.nbcsports.com. Retrieved May 14, 2014.
  16. "Spotrac.com: Laurent Duvernay-Tardif contract". spotrac.com. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  17. "Chiefs first draft pick signing is in: G Zach Fulton agrees to a contract". Arrowheadpride.com. May 13, 2014. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  18. "Ourlads.com: Kansas City Chiefs Depth Chart: 09/01/2014". Ourlads.com. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  19. Wesseling, Chris (February 28, 2017). "Laurent Duvernay-Tardif signs 5-year Chiefs extension". NFL.com.
  20. Williams, Charean (October 7, 2018). "Laurent Duvernay-Tardif fractures left fibula". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports.
  21. "Chiefs' Andy Reid says injured guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif will return this season". ESPN.com.
  22. "Laurent Duvernay-Tardif injury worse than Chiefs thought, putting his return in doubt". The Kansas City Star. October 10, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  23. "Laurent Duvernay-Tardif still working through his injury". Chiefswire. USA Today. January 3, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  24. Gordon, Grant (January 15, 2019). "Chiefs activate guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif from IR". NFL.com.
  25. "Kansas City Chiefs win Super Bowl LIV". NFL. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  26. "Report: Kansas City Chiefs and Laurent Duvernay-Tardif agree to restructured deal". SI.com.
  27. Kessler, Martin (September 7, 2018). "Before The NFL Had Dr. Duvernay-Tardif, There Was Dr. Milt McColl". Retrieved October 3, 2018.
  28. "Chiefs Lineman Gets His Medical Degree, Then Heads Back to Practice". The New York Times. May 30, 2018. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 31, 2018.
  29. Teicher, Adam (May 29, 2018). "It's Dr. Laurent Duvernay-Tardif to you". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
  30. Grathoff, Pete (June 26, 2018). "NFL criticized for denying request of Chiefs' Duvernay-Tardif to add M.D. to jersey". Retrieved September 29, 2019.
  31. https://www.ordre-national.gouv.qc.ca/membres/membre-en.asp?id=3587
  32. "NFL et médecine: le beau risque de Laurent Duvernay-Tardif" [NFL and medicine: the bold risk of Laurent Duvernay-Tardif]. L'actualité (in French). October 30, 2015. Retrieved November 28, 2015.
  33. "A Blocker Moves to the Pandemic's Front Line". SI.com.
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