Kahlee Jacoby Hamler (born July 8, 1999) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

for the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the Penn State Nittany Lions.

Early life

Hamler moved from his hometown,

Pontiac, Michigan Pontiac ( ') is a city in and the county seat of Oakland County, Michigan, Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located roughly northwest of downtown Detroit, Pontiac is part of the Metro Detroit, Detroit metropolitan area, and is vari ...

, to Florida to play his final year of high school football as a senior at

IMG Academy IMG Academy is a University-preparatory school, preparatory boarding school and sports training destination in Bradenton, Florida, United States. The organization is set across over 600 acres (243 ha) and features programs consisting of sport ca ...

. Before his first career game at IMG Academy, he tore his ACL. Prior to transferring to IMG Academy, Hamler was a two year letterman at St. Mary's Preparatory School in Orchard Lake, Michigan. He was rated as a four-star prospect by

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

Rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...

and

Scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

and a three star prospect by

247Sports 247Sports is an American network of websites that focus mainly on college recruiting, athletic recruitment in college football and college basketball, basketball. It is owned and operated by Paramount Global, Paramount. The website hosts a large ...

. He also ran track for two seasons.

College career

2017 season

Hamler

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

as a freshman at Penn State due to suffering a torn ACL the previous year.

2018 season

In the first game of his collegiate career against Appalachian State, Hamler returned a kickoff 52 yards with less than two minutes on the clock to help spark Penn State's game-tying drive. He capped the drive off with a 15-yard

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

reception with under a minute remaining, ending the game with 3 catches for 67 yards and a touchdown. Against Ohio State, Hamler was awarded

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

Freshman of the Week honors after recording four receptions for 138 yards, including a 93-yard touchdown. Through five games, Hamler recorded 13 receptions for 308 yards and four touchdowns in his first season as a collegiate athlete.

2019 season

In the 2019 season, Hamler recorded 56 receptions for 904 receiving yards and eight receiving touchdowns.

Professional career

Denver Broncos

2020 season

Hamler was selected by the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

with the 46th overall pick in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft. In Week 2, Hamler made his NFL debut and recorded three receptions for 48 receiving yards in a 26–21 loss to the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

. In Week 8 against the

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

, Hamler recorded his first career touchdown catch with no time remaining on the clock to help the Broncos win the game 31–30. In Week 14 against the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

, Hamler recorded two receptions for 86 yards and two touchdowns during the 32–27 victory. On January 2, 2021, Hamler was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

due to a hamstring injury. He finished his rookie season with 30 catches for 381 yards and three touchdowns.

2021 season

Trying to shake off the hamstring issues that plagued his rookie season, Hamler began training camp of his sophomore season in a crowded receiving corps. He shone early in preseason, catching a touchdown from

Drew Lock Paul Andrew Lock (born November 10, 1996) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Missouri Tigers football, Missou ...

during the Broncos' first preseason game against the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

. He suffered a torn ACL in Week 3 and was placed on season-ending injured reserve on September 28, 2021.

2022 season

On December 3, 2022, Hamler was placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. He played in seven games and recorded seven receptions for 165 yards in the 2022 season. On March 23, 2023, Hamler was ruled out for 4–6 months after undergoing surgery to repair a partially torn pectoral muscle he suffered while training on his own. On July 31, 2023, Hamler announced he was diagnosed with

pericarditis Pericarditis () is inflammation of the pericardium, the fibrous sac surrounding the heart. Symptoms typically include sudden onset of sharp chest pain, which may also be felt in the shoulders, neck, or back. The pain is typically less severe whe ...

. Hamler was then waived by the Denver Broncos with a non-football illness designation.

Indianapolis Colts

Hamler signed with the

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

of the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

on September 30, 2023. He was not signed to a reserve/future contract after the season and thus became a free agent upon the expiration of his practice squad contract.

Buffalo Bills

Hamler signed a reserve/future contract with the

on January 20, 2024. He was released as part of final roster cuts on August 27 and signed back to the practice squad the following day. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 28, 2025.

References

External links

Buffalo Bills bioPenn State Nittany Lions bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamler, K. J. 1999 births Living people Players of American football from Pontiac, Michigan IMG Academy alumni American football wide receivers Penn State Nittany Lions football players Denver Broncos players Indianapolis Colts players Buffalo Bills players