Mitchell Morse (born April 21, 1992) is an American former 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 ...

player who was a center for 10 seasons in 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) 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 of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

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 ...

, and

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

. 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

Missouri Tigers The Missouri Tigers intercollegiate athletics programs represent the University of Missouri, located in Columbia. The name comes from a band of armed Union Home Guards called the "Fighting Tigers of Columbia" who, in 1864, protected Columbia ...

Early life

Morse was born in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

, to Kevin and Catherine Morse. He attended St. Michael's Catholic Academy where he played starting

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

and

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

positions. His performance as an offensive lineman during his junior and senior seasons earned Morse first-team all-state honors. During his senior season in 2009 as a defensive tackle, Morse earned first-team all-district honors. Morse was ranked No. 19 offensive tackle in the nation by

ESPN.com ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN. It is owned by ESPN Internet Ventures, a division of ESPN Inc. History Since launching in April 1995 as ESPNET.SportsZone.com (ESPNET SportsZone), the website has developed numerous sections including ...

. He was ranked No. 51 tackle prospect in the nation by Rivals.com. Morse twice won Academic All-State honors. His academic performance gained him offers from

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, Texas Christian,

Stanford Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and th ...

and Vanderbilt."MU Tigers"
Football Profile. Retrieved October 14, 2024.

College career

After sitting out the 2010 season, Morse played as a redshirt freshman in all 13 games with the Missouri Tigers team during the 2011 season. During his first active season, Morse's defensive skills were assigned to part of the placekicking protection team. The 2011 season also saw Morse earn 1st-Team Academic All-Big 12 honors and his first letter. Morse saw his first starting season in 2012 as the Tigers' center. In this position, he started seven games. However the offensive lineup became plagued with injuries, assigning Morse to the alternate position of right tackle. Morse started in this position for the remaining four games. His place on the reorganized offensive line alongside left guard Max Copeland, left tackle Justin Britt, center Evan Boehm and right guard Connor McGovern, helped the Tigers make consecutive SEC Championship appearances during the 2013 and 2014 seasons.Kiley, Brandon (June 16, 2021)
"Team Texas Offensive Lineman: Mitch Morse was an iron man for two of the most successful Mizzou offensive lines of the past 20 years"
Rock M Nation.com. Retrieved October 14, 2024. During the 2012, 2013 and 2014 seasons, Morse made SEC Academic Honor Roll. While at Mizzou, Morse studied

Hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

and

Restaurant Management Restaurant management is the profession of managing a restaurant. Associate, bachelor, and graduate degree programs are offered in restaurant management by community colleges, junior colleges, and some universities in the United States Th ...

Professional career

Kansas City Chiefs

Morse was selected by the

in the second round, 49th overall, in the

2015 NFL draft The 2015 NFL draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football, football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park ...

. Morse was selected for the Pro Football Writers of America All-Rookie Team. In 2017, Morse missed Weeks 3–7 with a foot injury before returning to the lineup the following week. He re-injured the foot in Week 14, and 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 ...

on December 15, 2017.

Buffalo Bills

On March 13, 2019, Morse signed a four-year $44.5 million contract with the

, making him the highest-paid center in the league at the time. On March 14, 2022, Morse signed a two-year, $19.5 million contract extension with the Bills. On March 6, 2024, Morse was released after five seasons.

Jacksonville Jaguars

On March 13, 2024, Morse signed a two-year contract with the

. On March 6, 2025, Morse announced his retirement from the NFL after 10 seasons.

References

External links

Kansas City Chiefs bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morse, Mitch 1992 births Living people Players of American football from Austin, Texas American football offensive tackles American football offensive guards American football centers Missouri Tigers football players Kansas City Chiefs players Buffalo Bills players Jacksonville Jaguars players American Conference Pro Bowl players