Noah Ryan Gray (born April 30, 1999) 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

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 ...

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

and was drafted by the Chiefs in the fifth round of the

2021 NFL Draft The 2021 NFL Draft was the 86th National Football League Draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland from April 29 to May 1, 2021 ...

Early years

Gray grew up in

Gardner, Massachusetts Gardner, officially the City of Gardner, is a city in Worcester County in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The population was 21,287 in the 2020 census. Gardner is home of such sites as the Blue Moon Diner, Dunn State Park, Ga ...

and attended

Leominster High School Leominster High School (also known as Leominster High or LHS) is a public high school located in Leominster, Massachusetts, United States. It is the only secondary educational institution found in Leominster. It is situated in a mixed-industrial-r ...

. He played wide receiver as a freshman before becoming the team's starting quarterback the next season. He completed 101 of 179 passes for 1,707 yards and 21 touchdowns in his junior season. As a senior, Gray moved back to wide receiver and was named first-team All-State after catching 30 passes for 619 yards and eight touchdowns. Gray committed to play college football at

over offers from

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

and

Appalachian State Appalachian State University (; Appalachian, App State, App, or ASU) is a public university in Boone, North Carolina. It was founded as a teachers college in 1899 by brothers B. B. and D. D. Dougherty and the latter's wife, Lillie Shull Dough ...

College career

Gray recorded five receptions for 37 yards and two touchdowns as a freshman. He played in all 13 of Duke's games and had 20 receptions for 234 yards and one touchdown in his sophomore season. As a junior, Gray had 51 receptions for 392 yards and three touchdowns and was named second-team All-ACC and a second-team All-American by The Walter Camp Football Foundation. Gray entered his senior year on the watchlist for the

Mackey Award The John Mackey Award is presented annually to college football's most outstanding tight end. Established in 2000 by the Nassau County Sports Commission, the award is given annually to the tight end who best exemplifies the play, sportsmanship, ac ...

and as one of the top tight end prospects for the 2021 NFL Draft.

Professional career

Gray was drafted by the

in the fifth round, 162nd overall, of the

. He signed his four-year rookie contract on May 13, 2021. He scored his first career NFL touchdown 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 ...

in Week 10, on Sunday Night Football.

References

External links

Duke Blue Devils bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Noah Living people American football tight ends Duke Blue Devils football players Players of American football from Massachusetts People from Leominster, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Worcester County, Massachusetts Kansas City Chiefs players 1999 births