Kansas City Chiefs 2014 Draft Recap: Fan Grade Poll
By John Viril
Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, whom the Chiefs took in the 6th round at no. 200 overall, is one of most interesting characters taken in the entire NFL draft.
Duvernay-Tardif is not only Canadian, he is a medical student at McGill University’s 6-year medicine program.
(Personal Note: The only reason I know about McGill’s six year med program, which you can enter as an 18-year-old college freshman, was a few pleasant days I spent on the beach in Malaga, Spain with a beautiful 24-year-old McGill Medicine graduate named Lucia when I was all of 20 years old. Oh my. McGill University is in Montreal. You should have heard the French undertone to her English)
The 6-5, 321lb. OT played in Canada and won the J.P. Metras award as the best CIS (Canadian Interuniversity Sport) lineman. He is also in his 5th year in McGill’s Medicine program and helped deliver twins this weekend. I can’t help but think an athletic monster like Duvernay-Tardif must look decidedly odd in surgical greens.
He’s something of a project in the NFL, but he was considered the top prospect in Canada. Certainly, chasing after a Canadian prospect reflects some outside-the-box thinking, but reports indicate he’s got a nasty streak and a terrific punch. He’s the kind of guy that likes to bury defenders in run blocking, which suggests he’s a perfect attitude fit for right tackle.
Our Fansided Network writer Jared Brook at La Métropole Sports landed an audio interview with him:
"The offensive lineman from McGill University was picked in the sixth round by the Kansas City Chiefs and will be flying there on Sunday morning for an orientation camp. “The mentality of the Chiefs is that they don’t want to wait,” he said on a conference call adding that he was told to be ready to practice as early as Monday."
It would be interesting if Duvernay-Tardif decided to become an orthopedic surgeon because then he could both cause, and repair, the havoc that occurs on an NFL field every Sunday.
Duvernay-Tardif again shows Chiefs GM John Dorsey‘s search for guys with upside. Coming from Canada, he lacks the polish that someone from the SEC would possess. But, Duvernay-Tardif is obviously smart, hard-working, and has a nasty attitude.