Last year, the Kansas City Chiefs surprised some folks by signing undrafted free agent tight end Demetrius Harris. What was unique about that signing is what Harris did in college -- he was a basketball player.
KC Chiefs GM John Dorsey, who is known for looking high and low for all types of NFL Draft prospects, reportedly has his eye on another former basketball player.
The Denver Broncos recently called Miami Hurricanes basketball player Erik Swoope to work him out, according to a report from Yahoo! Sports. Shortly after that, both the Chiefs and Miami Dolphins called to express interest in Swoope, according to the report.
Will the 6'5, 220-pound Swoope be a tight end? Maybe not. As our own Mile High Report points out, Swoope's not as big as some of the other basketball-players-turned-tight ends.
Gates (6'4, 255 pounds), Graham (6'7, 265 pounds), and Thomas (6'5, 250 pounds) all have a few inches of height and thirty-something pounds of muscle on Swoope, which may cause teams to be wary of him as a tight end prospect.
Which means he could be a potential receiver. If, you know, someone actually signs him.
Demetrius Harris came from Milwaukee where he averaged nine points per game in his final season. Swoope averaged five points last year.
It's hard to expect much out of these former basketball players because full-time football players dedicate so much time just to get to the point where they could be drafted. Of course, that didn't stop Antonio Gates or Julius Thomas or Jimmy Graham from becoming the best at their position (besides Tony G., another basketball player, of course).
Update: Yet another former basketball player linked to the Chiefs, TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins.