Kris Boyd (born September 12, 1996) 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 wit ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create turnove ...

for the Houston Texans 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 ma ...

(NFL). He played college football at

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

and was selected 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 expansio ...

in the seventh round of the

2019 NFL Draft The 2019 NFL Draft was the 84th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2019 NFL season. The draft was held on April 25–27 in Nashville, Tennessee. The first round was held on April ...

High school career

Boyd attended Gilmer High School in

Gilmer, Texas Gilmer is a city in, and the county seat of, Upshur County, Texas. It is best known for being the home of the East Texas Yamboree and the birthplace of popular music singers Don Henley of the Eagles band and Johnny Mathis, as well as blues musician ...

, where he played both running back and defensive back under current UTSA Roadrunners head coach

Jeff Traylor Jeffrey Michael Traylor (born May 9, 1968) is an American football coach. He is the head football coach at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), a position he has held since the 2020 season. Early life Traylor attended Gilmer High Scho ...

. As a sophomore in 2012, he was chosen "Offensive Newcomer of the Year" in District 16-3A after rushing for 1,276 yards and 19 touchdowns and recording 18 tackles and one forced fumble on defense, helping lead Gilmer to a 14-2 record. In his junior season, he was tabbed first-team All-District 16-3A as Gilmer had an 11-2 record, including a 5-1 district mark, and an appearance in the 3A Division 2 regional playoffs in 2013. Boyd totaled 1,052 rushing yards and 808 receiving yards (31 total

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Americ ...

) on offense as a senior. He also recorded 43 tackles, two interceptions, four pass breakups and one fumble recovery on defense, leading Gilmer to a 16-0 record and the 4A Division 2 state championship. Following his senior season, he was selected to participate in the 2015 U.S. Army All-America Bowl. Boyd was also a standout

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

performer at Gilmer. As a senior, he was a member of the

4x200-meter relay 4X (abbreviation of ''Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exterminate'') is a subgenre of strategy-based computer and board games, and include both turn-based and real-time strategy titles. The gameplay involves building an empire. Emphasis is pla ...

unit that set a record at the 2015 UIL 4A state meet (1:25.49). He was also the runner-up in the

100 meters The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contest ...

at that meet with a time of 10.58 seconds.

College career

Boyd played four seasons as a defensive back for the

Texas Longhorns The Texas Longhorns are the athletic teams representing the University of Texas at Austin. The teams are sometimes referred to as the Horns and take their name from Longhorn cattle that were an important part of the development of Texas, and a ...

. He appeared in 51 games and made 33 starts. Boyd became a starter at cornerback for the Longhorns during his sophomore season, when he started the final eight games of the season and fished sixth on the team with 51 tackles along with an interception, five pass breakups, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries. He collected 191 tackles (141 solo) with four interceptions, 40 passes defended, four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries. He was named second-team All-Big 12 by the Associated Press after his junior season, when he made 57 tackles with two interceptions and 15 pass breakups. As a senior in 2018, Boyd made 54 tackles, including 4.5 for loss, with one sack first and 15 passes defensed and was named first-team All-

Big 12 The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its f ...

. He was invited to play in the

Senior Bowl The Senior Bowl is a post-season college football all-star game played annually in late January or early February in Mobile, Alabama, which showcases the best NFL Draft prospects of those players who have completed their college eligibility. ...

following his senior season.

Professional career

Minnesota Vikings

Originally projected as a mid-round pick, Boyd slid before being selected in the seventh round (217th overall) of the

by the

, joining ex-teammate at Texas and close friend Holton Hill. Boyd signed a four-year, $2.6 million contract with the Vikings on May 5, 2019. Boyd made his NFL debut against the Atlanta Falcons on September 8, 2019, making two tackles while also drawing two penalties. Boyd finished his rookie season with 22 tackles, one forced fumble and one pass defended. On December 15, 2020, Boyd was placed on injured reserve with a shoulder injury.

Arizona Cardinals

On April 10, 2023, Boyd signed with the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division, an ...

. He was released on October 2.

Houston Texans

On October 27, 2023, Boyd was signed to the Houston Texans practice squad.

Personal life

Boyd's brother, DeMarco, is a former linebacker on the Longhorns. Two of Boyd's cousins, Bobby Taylor and

Curtis Brown Curtis Lee "Curt" Brown Jr. (born March 11, 1956) is a former NASA astronaut and retired United States Air Force colonel. Background Colonel Brown was born March 11, 1956. He graduated from East Bladen High School in Elizabethtown, North Caroli ...

, also played in the NFL.

References

External links

Arizona Cardinals bioTexas Longhorns bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boyd, Kris 1996 births Living people People from Gilmer, Texas Players of American football from Texas American football cornerbacks Texas Longhorns football players Minnesota Vikings players Arizona Cardinals players Houston Texans players