 Duvernay-Tardif with theKansas City Chiefs in 2017 | |||||||
| No. 76, 72 | |||||||
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| Position | Guard | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born | (1991-02-11)February 11, 1991 (age 35) Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Quebec, Canada | ||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||
| Listed weight | 321 lb (146 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school | Collège Saint-Hilaire(Mont-Saint-Hilaire) | ||||||
| University | McGill | ||||||
| NFL draft | 2014: 6th round, 200th overall pick | ||||||
| CFL draft | 2014: 3rd round, 19th overall pick | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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Laurent Duvernay-Tardif (French:[lɔʁɑ̃dyvɛʁnetaʁdif]; born February 11, 1991) is a Canadian physician and former professionalfootball player who was aguard in theNational Football League (NFL). He playeduniversity football and attendedmedical school atMcGill University inMontreal before being selected by theKansas City Chiefs in the sixth round of the2014 NFL draft and playing six years on the team.[2] Duvernay-Tardif is one of a small number of NFL players to graduate from medical school.[3][4][5][6] He was made aKnight of theNational Order of Quebec in 2019 and enrolled atHarvard University to get aMaster of Public Health degree the following year. In December of 2024, he was appointed as a Member to theOrder of Canada.[7]
Duvernay-Tardif opted out of the2020 NFL season due to concerns over theCOVID-19 pandemic and returned to Canada to work in acare facility. As a result of his efforts on and off the field in 2020, he was named a co-winner of theLou Marsh Award, given annually to Canada's top athlete, as well as theSports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year.[8] He returned to the NFL in 2021 after being traded to theNew York Jets for two seasons.
He announced his retirement from the NFL on September 21, 2023.[9]
Duvernay-Tardif was born inMont-Saint-Hilaire, Quebec, and grew up inMontreal. He started playing football at the age of 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.[10][11]
Duvernay-Tardif attendedMcGill University, where he was member of theMcGill Redbirds football team from 2010 to 2013. In his final year, he won theJ. P. Metras Trophy, recognizing the bestlineman in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (nowU Sports) system, and was named an All-Canadian for the second consecutive season.[12]
First Year (2010): attended training practice at 253lbs and played as defensive line as #92. He dressed for six out of nine games and started three games.
Second Year (2011): attended training practice at 280lbs and played as offensive line as #66. He dressed and started for all nine games at OT, playing two-ways.
Third Year (2012): attended training practice at 305lbs. He dressed and started for all nine games at OT, playing two-ways.
Fourth Year (2013): attending training practice at 315lbs. He dressed and started for all eight games at OT.[13]
He balanced university football with medical school. In a 2014 article inSports Illustrated, Joan Niesen said that he "was practicing just once a week—and he was still the best college player in Canada."[14][a]
Duvernay-Tardif played in the2014 East-West Shrine Game, in which he was part ofJerry Glanville's East team that defeated the West 23–13.[15][16] Duvernay-Tardif did not receive an invitation to theNFL Scouting Combine. On March 27, 2014, Duvernay-Tardif held a personal pro day inMontreal that was attended by nine NFL teams and fourCanadian Football League (CFL) teams.[17]
| Height | Weight | 40-yard dash | 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 fromPersonal Pro Day[18] | ||||||||||||
In the CFL's Amateur Scouting Bureau final rankings, Duvernay-Tardif was ranked as the best eligible player for the2014 CFL draft, a position he held throughout the entirety of the season.[19] 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 selected by theCalgary Stampeders in the third round (19th overall).[20] In July 2022, his CFL rights were acquired by theMontreal Alouettes in a trade with the Stampeders.[21][22]
TheKansas City Chiefs selected Duvernay-Tardif in the sixth round (200th overall) of the2014 NFL draft.[23] Duvernay-Tardif was the 15th offensive tackle drafted in 2014.[24] Since the inception of theNFL draft, Duvernay-Tardif is the tenth player to be chosen from a Canadian university.[25]
On May 14, 2014, the Kansas City Chiefs signed Duvernay-Tardif to a four-year, $2.34 millioncontract that includes asigning bonus of $100,300.[26][27] Throughout training camp, Duvernay-Tardif competed to be a starting guard againstZach Fulton,Jeffrey Linkenbach,Rishaw Johnson,Mike McGlynn, andRokevious Watkins.[28] Head coachAndy Reid named Duvernay-Tardif the fifth offensive guard on the depth chart to start the regular season, behindJeff Allen, Fulton, Linkenbach, and McGlynn.[29] On September 13, 2015, Duvernay-Tardif made his first career start for the Chiefs in the season opener against theHouston Texans. He went on to play all 16 games with 13 starts for the Chiefs in2015. In the2016 season, Duvernay-Tardif started all 14 games he played in at right guard. On February 28, 2017, the Kansas City Chiefs signed Duvernay-Tardif to a five-year, $42.36 million contract that included $20.20 million guaranteed and asigning bonus of $10 million.[27][30] During the2018 season, he started the first five games of the 2018 season at right guard before suffering a fracturedfibula in Week 5.[31] He was placed on injured reserve on October 9. Chiefs head coachAndy Reid said he would not be out for the season and would be reactivated at some point later in the season.[32] However, his injury was worse than originally thought,[33] and he didn't start practicing again until the last week of the schedule.[34] He was activated off injured reserve on January 15, 2019, prior to the Chiefs AFC Championship matchup against theNew England Patriots.[35] In2019, Duvernay-Tardif played 14 games. On February 2, 2020, the Chiefs went on to winSuper Bowl LIV, their first championship in 50 years.[36]
On April 22, 2020, the Chiefs restructured Duvernay-Tardif's contract to free up salary cap space.[37] On July 24, he announced via hisTwitter account he chose to opt-out of playing during the2020 season as a precaution due toCOVID-19.[38] He had been working as anorderly at a long-term care facility inSaint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, about 40 minutes away from Montreal, during the pandemic.[39] He was the first NFL player to announce he would not play the season because of COVID-19.[40] Without him, the Chiefs reachedSuper Bowl LV, but lost 9–31 to theTampa Bay Buccaneers. His role in fighting COVID off the field in 2020 resulted inSports Illustrated naming him one of their Sportspeople of the Year.[41] For his efforts both on and off the field in 2020, he was named a co-winner of theLou Marsh Trophy, which is awarded annually to Canada's top athlete for the year.[42][43] On July 10, 2021, he was named the recipient of theMuhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award at the2021 ESPYs for his decision to opt out of the 2020 NFL season to help fight the global COVID-19 pandemic.[44][45]
Duvernay-Tardif was traded to theNew York Jets on November 2, 2021, in exchange for tight endDaniel Brown.[46] On November 18, 2022, after going unsigned all offseason and into theseason, Duvernay-Tardif was signed to the Jetspractice squad.[47] He was promoted to the active roster on December 7.[48]
On September 21, 2023, Duvernay-Tardif announced his retirement from the NFL.[49]
Duvernay-Tardif graduated fromMcGill 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.[50] He had the support of the Chiefs coaching staff, especially head coachAndy Reid, whose mother also graduated from McGill's medical school.[51] 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.[52] As of 2020, he has not yet completed hispostgraduate medical training.[citation needed] Duvernay-Tardif provided the convocation address at McGill's 2020 graduation ceremony.[53] In 2020, he began studying atHarvard University to receive aMaster of Public Health.[54]
During the 2018 offseason, Duvernay-Tardif worked as a feature reporter for theCanadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) during its coverage of the2018 Winter Olympics.[51] He is also a member of the NFLPA Health and Safety Committee to protect the health of players.[25]
In 2019, Duvernay-Tardif was made a Knight of theNational Order of Quebec.[55] He is the grandson of former Quebec cabinet ministerGuy Tardif.[56]
During theCOVID-19 pandemic, Duvernay-Tardif wanted to help combat the pandemic and returned to Quebec to work at CHSLD Gertrude-Lafrance, a long-term care facility in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu.[57] He was profiled in aTSN documentary, "Front Line", which was later nominated for the best sports feature segment at the9th Canadian Screen Awards.
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