We are rapidly approaching the midway point of the 2025 NFL regular season, and the Kansas City Chiefs are looking to claw their way back into the win column in Week 6 when they meet the Detroit Lions on Sunday Night Football.
While this iteration of the Chiefs attempts to overcome their 0-2 start to the season, there are some familiar faces from recent Kansas City rosters who are stuck in neutral as free agents while they, perhaps not so patiently, wait for their next opportunity in the NFL.
Veteran wide receiver/return specialist Mecole Hardman is one of the latest additions to this group, but he is far from the only memorable name.
4 Unemployed Ex-Chiefs Entering Week 6
1. Mecole Hardman, WR/Returner
The former wide receiver/return man for Kansas City is one of the more recent additions to this list, as he was only released by the Green Bay Packers on Sept. 23. Mecole Hardman left the Chiefs as a free agent following the 2024 campaign, his second stint in Kansas City, to join the Packers on a one-year deal. Now, it's back to the drawing board.
Unfortunately, he never received that opportunity after not making the 53-man roster out of training camp before being released from the practice squad. On Oct. 7, Hardman had a workout with the New Orleans Saints, but the franchise opted to sign WR Ronnie Bell instead, leaving time to tell how long he'll remain without a job.
2. Jody Fortson, TE
Jody Fortson is another player who spent multiple years on the roster in Kansas City who is still searching for work as Week 6 action begins. An undrafted rookie out of Valdosta State, Fortson made the move from WR to TE upon entering the NFL and wound up being part of three Super Bowl championship teams with the Chiefs as a result.
This past season, Fortson was limited to just three games after a knee injury forced him to the injured reserve. In 22 career appearances for Kansas City, Fortson had 15 receptions for 160 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Now, he is just waiting by his phone, hoping that the next call is the opportunity he's been waiting for.
3. Peyton Hendershot, TE
Another undrafted player who found his way to Kansas City, the Chiefs acquired Peyton Hendershot in a trade with the Dallas Cowboys before the start of the 2024 campaign. While the former Indiana Hoosiers standout TE performed admirably for Kansas City in limited action, in seven appearances, Hendershot had five receptions for 51 yards; he was primarily used as a special teams player.
Unfortunately for the TE, a calf injury forced him to the injured reserve late in the 2024 campaign, and the Chiefs decided not to tender him a contract during the offseason. As of this writing, there is no news regarding where his next home in the NFL may be.
4. Ben Niemann, LB
Outside of Hardman, the most well-known former Chief on this list might be veteran linebacker Ben Niemann.
The former University of Iowa standout joined Kansas City as an undrafted free agent in 2018 and wound up appearing in 62 games for the Chiefs over four years. After racking up 167 total tackles for Kansas City's defense from 2018-2021, Niemann moved on from the franchise but struggled to find a long-term home in the NFL after that, spending one season each with the Arizona Cardinals, Denver Broncos, and Detroit Lions, respectively, before recently being released by the New York Jets on Sept. 30, just one week after having joined their practice squad.
What comes next for any of these players is impossible to project at this time. However, they all proved at one point or another that they were capable of helping a team with Super Bowl aspirations during their tenures in Kansas City. For all we know, head coach Andy Reid has already reached out to other teams on their behalf, as he did for another former Chiefs player this past offseason.