Dan Chisena (born February 25, 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 ...

wide receiver for 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 club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

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 ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campu ...

Early life and high school

Chisena was born in Paoli, Pennsylvania and grew up in

Downingtown, Pennsylvania Downingtown is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, west of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 7,898. Downingtown was settled by European colonists in the early 18th century and has a number of historic buildings an ...

. He attended

Downingtown East High School Downingtown High School is a secondary school located in Downingtown, Pennsylvania and Uwchlan Township, Pennsylvania. Population growth in the burgeoning Downingtown Area School District forced the original Downingtown High School to split into ...

, where he played football and was a sprinter on the track team. He was named first-team All- Ches-Mont League as a senior in football after catching 41 passes for 553 yards and three touchdowns. In track, Chisena won gold in the 100 meters, 200 meters and 4x100 relay at the 2015 PIAA Class AAA Outdoor State Championship.

College career

Chisena joined both the football and track teams as a walk-on and redshirted as a freshman. He was offered a track scholarship at the end of his freshman year and left the football team due NCAA rules. In track, Chisena came in third at the 2017

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

Outdoor Championships in the 400-meter and was part of the team that won the 4x400 relay at the 2017 Indoor Championships. After tearing his hamstring in early 2018, Chisena left the track team after two seasons in order to return to the football team. Chisena played in two games in his first season with the football team as a junior. He was awarded a football scholarship for his final season during the team's spring game, which he caught a 59-yard touchdown pass in. As a senior, he played in all twelve of the Nittany Lions' games and caught three passes for 66 yards.

Professional career

Minnesota Vikings

Chisena was signed by 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 on April 26, 2020. Chisena made the Vikings' 53-man active roster out of training camp, primarily for his special teams potential and his versatility, as he was converted to safety. Chisena made his NFL debut in the season opener on September 13, 2020 against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

, playing on special teams. Chisena recovered a fumble on a muffed punt by

DeAndre Carter DeAndre Carter (born April 10, 1993) is an American football wide receiver and return specialist for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Sacramento State before signing with the Baltimo ...

on October 4, 2020 in a 31-23 win over the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

. Chisena played in 14 games as a rookie, playing exclusively on special teams and finishing the year with six tackles and a fumble recovery. On September 1, 2021, Chisena was placed on injured reserve. He was activated, then waived on October 9, 2021. He was re-signed to the active roster on October 12. On August 30, 2022, Chisena was waived by the Vikings. He was signed to the practice squad one day later.

Pittsburgh Steelers

On January 23, 2023, Chisena signed a reserve/future contract with the

References

External links

Penn State Nittany Lions bioMinnesota Vikings bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chisena, Dan 1997 births Living people American football wide receivers Penn State Nittany Lions football players Minnesota Vikings players Penn State Nittany Lions men's track and field athletes People from Paoli, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh Steelers players Players of American football from Pennsylvania Sportspeople from Chester County, Pennsylvania Track and field athletes from Pennsylvania