NFL teams discarded these 3 before the season. Now, they’re in Super Bowl with Chiefs
Kareem Hunt wasn’t sure this was worth it anymore. And the questions he faced were always the hardest part.
Six months ago, the Kansas City Chiefs running back had no NFL team — and had also failed to secure an invitation to a summer training camp.
His dream to come back hadn’t died, though. So he worked out a few days a week at Willoughby South, his old high school in Ohio.
That’s when kids who recognized him always seemed to approach him with one line in particular:
“Are you playing on a football team?”
Hunt couldn’t help but feel shame when having to answer.
“I didn’t really know what to tell them,” Hunt told The Star. “I didn’t know if I was gonna get another opportunity.”
It was a lonely process — so much so that Hunt admits that he didn’t make his scheduled workout a day or two, opting to push it back later in the week.
He also couldn’t help but have a thought creep into the back of his head.
Was it really worth it to put in all this effort — just in the hope that some NFL team would want him back for his age-29 season?
“It’s tough being down at the bottom,” Hunt said, “and just wanting to show your worth.”
Hunt’s story arc is a familiar one for this Chiefs team as it enters Sunday’s Super Bowl LIX against the Philadelphia Eagles. And teammates Samaje Perine and JuJu Smith-Schuster certainly can relate.
KC has become the land of second chances for veterans forgotten by other franchises.
With coach Andy Reid having the vision to see potential that others couldn’t recognize.
“When you got guys like that in your corner,” Hunt said, “you want to go out there and work and play for them.”
KC ultimately signed Hunt in September following an injury to Isiah Pacheco. Hunt has been a steady force since, leading KC with 724 rushing yards in the regular season.
The 29-year-old Perine joined the Chiefs this season as part of his own revival story. During a late August meeting, Denver Broncos coaches told Perine they liked the younger running backs on their roster, and he was about to be released.
“It was a weird feeling,” Perine said.
But that emotion didn’t last long.
The Broncos tried to trade Perine before his eventual release, and just after that, the running back said he received a call from Reid.
The Chiefs coach shared that he’d watched Perine over the years and thought he could make an impact with this year’s team. His final message? Think red.
“Everything else was out the window,” Perine said with a smile. “Once I got that call from Coach Reid, then it was over with.”
Since signing with KC, Perine performed just as the Chiefs had hoped. He’s been a reliable third-down back, and even caught the game-sealing pass late in the Chiefs’ AFC Championship win over the Buffalo Bills.
Perine senses the Chiefs might’ve seen something similar in the veteran guys they brought onto the roster after training camp. He sees Hunt and Smith-Schuster and himself as players who don’t need to be in the spotlight; instead, they’ll work hard and be reliable when asked to do what’s needed.
“Whenever my number is called, I don’t have to be all amped up about anything. Don’t have to get going,” Perine said. “Just whenever I have to go in there and make a play, I make a play and go on about my business.”
It’s similar for the 28-year-old wideout Smith-Schuster, who, like Perine, joined the Chiefs after getting released in August.
This time, New England had no use for a future Chiefs contributor. In fact, the Patriots paid the $7 million remaining on Smith-Schuster’s contract to ensure he’d no longer be with the team.
“It was a mutual decision. I understand it. It goes both ways at the same time,” Smith-Schuster said. “But I feel like God had a different path for me.”
During his second stint with the Chiefs, Smith-Schuster helped stabilize the offense following early injuries to Rashee Rice and Hollywood Brown. Smith-Schuster also provided the Chiefs with their most physical blocker on the outside.
Smith-Schuster made big receiving plays when it mattered, too. He had two receptions for 60 yards in the Chiefs’ win over the Bills, while adding a 31-yard catch in the first quarter — the Chiefs’ longest play of the day.
The eighth-year pro credits Reid and general manager Brett Veach for their foresight and ability to envision roles for each veteran player, whether big or small.
“When your time is called,” Smith-Schuster said, “you see those guys always making plays.”
That’s what Hunt plans to do Sunday, channeling the hunger he had in the summer when no NFL team wanted to give him a shot.
The Chiefs finally did — something he’s been thankful for every day since.
“You could easily quit, or just retire or something like that,” Hunt said. “But I know how much I love the game of football, so I was just always thinking, ‘Once I get that next opportunity to play, it will be no regrets. I’m gonna go out there and give it my all.’”
And as for those kids back home in Ohio? The ones who asked him if he was still playing football?
Hunt hasn’t had a chance to talk to them lately — for good reason, of course.
“I’ve been busy,” he said with a smile. “They’re all probably watching.”
