Former Chiefs OL Dr. Laurent Duvernay-Tardif Working Out With Jets, per Report

The 2020 Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year continues to balance his NFL and medical careers.

Dr. Laurent Duvernay-Tardif was among the most notable opt-outs of the 2020 NFL season. The former Chiefs offensive lineman, who started 57 games for the team from 2015 to ’19, withdrew from pro football to work on the frontlines against COVID-19 in his native Canada. His work earned him Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year honors that year.

As he continues to balance his football career and work as a doctor, he reportedly is attempting to return to the sport once again for the stretch run of the 2022 season.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Duvernay-Tardif is working out with the Jets and has a chance to join the team’s practice squad. It would be his second stint with the club. Last fall, he returned to football, and was traded by the Chiefs to the Jets, for whom he started seven games down the stretch.

Reunion: Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, the FA OL who completed his residency program at a Montreal-area hospital, is working out for the #Jets today, source say.

The Good Doctor, who opted out in ‘20 to fight on the front lines of the pandemic, could sign to the NYJ practice squad. pic.twitter.com/gJ3GZ4ZMck

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 16, 2022

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Duvernay-Tardif attended McGill University, winning the J.P. Metras Trophy for Canada’s best collegiate lineman while also attending medical school. Last fall, he began applying for residency programs, landing a spot at his alma mater in July. 

“I’m going to prioritize medicine. … And we’ll see in September if there’s a fit,” Duvernay-Tardif told the Associated Press in June. “After eight years in the NFL, and I don’t want to sound pretentious by saying this, but I think I’ve earned the right to do what’s best for me and not just for football and kind of bet on myself a little bit.

“I’m really comfortable with the risk, and I’m pretty confident there’s going to be an offer on the table in September if I want it. And if I want it, I’ll take it. If medicine is going well and I feel like I’ve got to be out there in front of 80,000 people to play the sport I love, well, I’ll go, but I think I want it to be more on my terms.”

Now, after completing his residency, he’s ready to pursue football once again, per Rapoport’s report. 

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