Leopold "Leo" Chenal ( ; born October 26, 2000) 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 ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

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 club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

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 ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

Early life and high school career

Chenal grew up in West Sweden township and attended school in the Frederic district. He open enrolled as a freshman to nearby town

Grantsburg, Wisconsin Grantsburg is a village in Burnett County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,341 at the 2010 census. The village is located within the Town of Grantsburg. It was established by Canute Anderson. Geography Grantsburg is located a ...

to attend Grantsburg High School, where he played both running back and linebacker. As a senior, Chenal rushed for 2,038 yards and 42 touchdowns with 226 receiving yards and three touchdowns on offense and had 120 tackles and seven tackles for loss on defense. He was named both the small-school Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year by

Wisconsin Football Coaches Association The Wisconsin Football Coaches Association is an association of American football coaches on all levels within the state of Wisconsin. An annual clinic of members is held in Madison, Wisconsin to promote the sport, primarily at the high school lev ...

and the state Gatorade Football Player of the Year. Chenal finished his high school career with 3,706 rushing yards and 68 touchdowns and 1,300 receiving yards and 17 touchdown receptions on offense and with 385 tackles, 55 tackles for loss, seven sacks, and three interceptions on defense.

College career

Chenal joined the Wisconsin Badgers as an early enrollee. He played in 11 games during his freshman season and had 20 tackles with two tackles for loss and one sack. As a sophomore, he was named honorable mention All-

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 ...

after finishing the season with 46 tackles, six tackles for loss, 3.0 sacks, one forced fumble and one interception in seven games during Wisconsin's COVID-19-shortened 2020 season. Chenal was named the Butkus–Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year and first-team All-Big Ten as a junior. On January 3, 2022, Chenal announced that he would forgo his senior year to enter the

2022 NFL Draft The 2022 NFL Draft was the 87th edition of the National Football League's annual draft and was held from April 28–30, 2022, at the Caesars Forum on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The first round was held on Thursday, April 28, and w ...

Professional career

Chenal was selected in the third round (103rd overall) by the

in the

. Chenal made his NFL debut in the Chiefs' regular season opener against 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) West division, and play t ...

. He earned his first start in Week 5 against the

Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West divis ...

. He recorded his first professional sack in Week 10 against the

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 ...

. He finished his rookie season with 35 total tackles and one sack in 17 games, of which he started eight. Chenal recorded six tackles and a sack as the Chiefs won

Super Bowl LVII Super Bowl LVII is the upcoming championship game of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2022 NFL season. The game is scheduled to be played on February 12, 2023, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. It will be the fourth Super B ...

against the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

38–35.

References

External links

Kansas City Chiefs bioWisconsin Badgers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chenal, Leo 2000 births Living people People from Grantsburg, Wisconsin Players of American football from Wisconsin American football linebackers Wisconsin Badgers football players Kansas City Chiefs players