Joseph Demarius "Jody" Fortson Jr. (born December 7, 1995) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wit ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense (sports), offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide ...

for the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The t ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

(NFL). He played college football at

Valdosta State Valdosta State University (VSU or Valdosta State) is a public university in Valdosta, Georgia. It is one of the four comprehensive universities in the University System of Georgia. , VSU had over 12,000 undergraduate and graduate students. VS ...

after transferring from

Erie Community College SUNY Erie is a Public college, public community colleges in the United States, community college with three campuses in western New York (state), New York that serve residents in and near Erie County, New York, Erie County. It is part of the Sta ...

, and was signed by the Chiefs as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 2019. Fortson was on the Chiefs practice squad for their

Super Bowl LIV Super Bowl LIV was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2019 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Kansas City Chiefs defeated the National Football Conferen ...

championship which earned him a

Super Bowl ring The Super Bowl ring is an award in the National Football League given to the team members of the winning team of the league's annual championship game, the Super Bowl. Since only one Vince Lombardi Trophy is awarded to the team (ownership) its ...

College career

Fortson began his college football career at

before transferring to

. A wide receiver in college, Fortson tallied 37 receptions for 477 yards and 7 touchdowns in 19 games played for the Valdosta State Blazers. Despite an abbreviated senior season due to injury in which the Blazers won the Division II National Championship, Fortson was chosen to play in both the Tropical Bowl as well as the

College Gridiron Showcase The College Gridiron Showcase (CGS) is an independently operated annual post-season college football event hosted each January in Fort Worth, Texas. The event consists of NFL draft prospects who have completed their eligibility in NCAA Division ...

all-star events.

Professional career

Going into the NFL, Fortson converted to tight end and signed with the

as an undrafted free agent on May 13, 2019. He was waived on August 31, 2019 and signed to the practice squad the next day. Fortson remained on practice squad for the rest of the season and as the Chiefs won

against the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

. He re-signed with the Chiefs on February 5, 2020. He was waived on September 5, 2020. He signed to the practice squad the following day. On February 9, 2021, Fortson re-signed with the Chiefs. He made the Chiefs' active roster on August 31, 2021. He recorded his first career NFL reception against the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...

in Week 2 of the 2021 season. He would record his first career NFL touchdown reception the following week against the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

. He was placed on injured reserve on October 23. He was placed on Reserve/COVID-19 on December 10, 2021.

Career statistics

References

External links

Kansas City Chiefs bioValdosta State Blazers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fortson, Jody 1995 births Living people Players of American football from Buffalo, New York American football wide receivers Valdosta State Blazers football players Kansas City Chiefs players American football tight ends