Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, McGill medical student, inks $41.25M US deal with Kansas City Chiefs
25-year-old studying to become a doctor at McGill University while playing in NFL
Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, a native of Mont Saint-Hilaire, Que., and former member of the McGill Redmen, has signed a five-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs.
The deal is worth a reported $41.25 million US.
The move ends Duvernay-Tardif's four-year, $2.35-million rookie deal, which still had a year remaining.
It has been a meteoric rise for the 25-year-old, and the converted defensive lineman has done it while continuing to study medicine at McGill University.
Kansas City selected the six-foot-five, 321-pound offensive lineman in the sixth round, 200th overall, of the 2014 NFL draft.
Duvernay-Tardif made the Chiefs' 53-man roster as a rookie but didn't play. Dubbed "Canadian Doctor" and "Larry" by his teammates, Duvernay-Tardif became a starter in 2015, playing 13 games before making a career-best 14 starts this year — playing every game he dressed for.
The Chiefs finished atop the AFC West with a 12-4 record to secure the No. 2 playoff seed in the AFC. But their season ended bitterly as the Pittsburgh Steelers edged Kansas City 18-16 in a divisional playoff contest.
Earlier this month, Duvernay-Tardif returned to Montreal to continue his medical school studies and expects to complete his medical degree in 2018.