Brandon Dillon (born April 30, 1997) 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 with ...

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

for the

Vegas Vipers The Vegas Vipers are a professional American football team based in Las Vegas, Nevada. The team is an owned-and-operated member of the XFL (2020), XFL, owned by RedBird Capital, Dwayne Johnson and Dany Garcia's Alpha Acquico, LLC. The team beg ...

of the

XFL XFL may refer to: Sports * XFL (2001), a defunct American football league that played its only season in 2001 * XFL (2020), a professional American football league Vehicles * Bell XFL Airabonita, a 1940 U.S. Navy experimental interceptor aircra ...

. He played college football for Marian University.

Early life and high school

Dillon grew up in

Bringhurst, Indiana Bringhurst is an unincorporated community in Monroe Township, Carroll County, Indiana, United States. It is part of the Lafayette, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The Bringhurst post office was established in 1872. Bringhurst wa ...

and attended

Carroll High School Carroll High School can refer to: In the United States *Carroll High School (Alabama), Ozark, Alabama *Carroll High School (Flora, Indiana), Flora, Indiana *Carroll High School (Fort Wayne, Indiana), Fort Wayne, Indiana *Carroll High School (Iowa) ...

in nearby

Flora, Indiana Flora is a town in Monroe Township, Carroll County, Indiana, United States. The population was 2,036 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Lafayette, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area. History A post office was established at Flora in 1873 ...

, where he played baseball, basketball, and football. In football, Dillon was a four-year starter on both offense and defense and was named All-Area by the ''

Kokomo Tribune The ''Kokomo Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Kokomo, Indiana, United States. It is owned by Community Newspaper Holdings Inc. The ''Tribune'' was cited by the Audit Bureau of Circulation for the nation's highest market penetration for ei ...

'' twice and was a two-time Class A All-State selection, as well as all-area by the Lafayette Journal & Courier. He was also a two-time All-Area selection in basketball. Despite being recruited by

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, Toledo and

Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...

to join their programs as a preferred walk-on, Dillon opted to enroll at nearby Marian University, an NAIA school.

College career

Dillon was a member

Marian Knights Marian University is a private Roman Catholic university in Indianapolis, Indiana. Founded in 1851 by the Sisters of St. Francis in Oldenburg, Indiana, the college moved to Indianapolis in 1937. Marian was referred to as Marian College from 19 ...

for four seasons and was a freshman when the team won the 2015 NAIA National Championship. As a senior, Dillon caught 35 passes for 603 yards and five touchdowns and was named a first-team NAIA All-American. After the season he was the only NAIA player to be invited to participate in the 2017

NFLPA Collegiate Bowl The NFLPA Collegiate Bowl is a post-season college football all-star game for NFL draft-eligible college players, held annually in January. The event was founded in 2012 by the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA). Players predomi ...

. Dillon finished his collegiate career with 105 receptions for 1,661 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns in 42 games played.

Professional career

Minnesota Vikings

Dillon signed with the

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

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 ...

on April 27, 2019. Considered a long shot to make the team, Dillon made the Vikings' 53-man roster out of training camp. He made his NFL debut in the Vikings season opener on September 8, 2019. He was waived on September 10, 2019, and re-signed to the Vikings practice squad the next day. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Vikings on January 12, 2020. Dillon was waived by the Vikings during final roster cuts on September 5, 2020, and was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was elevated to the active roster on November 15, November 28, and December 5 for the team's weeks 10, 12, and 13 games against the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

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 club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...

, 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 club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...

, and reverted to the practice squad after each game. He was placed on the practice squad/injured list on December 8. He was placed on the practice squad/

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list by the team on December 29, and signed a reserve/future contract with the Vikings on January 5, 2021. He was released by the Vikings on September 18, 2021, and re-signed to their practice squad. Dillon was waived on December 28.

New York Jets

On December 29, 2021, Dillon was signed to the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Jets on January 10, 2022. He was waived on May 9, 2022.

New Orleans Saints

On June 21, 2022, Dillon signed with the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

. He was released on August 3, 2022.

References

External links

Marian Knights football bioMinnesota Vikings bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dillon, Brandon 1997 births Living people American football tight ends Marian Knights football players Minnesota Vikings players New York Jets players New Orleans Saints players Vegas Vipers players People from Carroll County, Indiana Players of American football from Indiana