Christopher Joseph Gedney (August 9, 1970 – March 9, 2018) was an American college and professional football player who was a

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. Lik ...

in 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) for six seasons. He played college football for Syracuse University, and earned All-American honors. He played professionally for the Chicago Bears and Arizona Cardinals of the NFL. After his football career ended, he served as assistant athletics director at Syracuse University.

Early years

Gedney was born in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington (Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

.National Football League, Historical Players
Chris Gedney profile
retrieved February 14, 2012. He graduated from

Liverpool High School Liverpool High School (LHS) is a comprehensive New York public high school located on Wetzel Road in Liverpool, northwest of the city of Syracuse in the Liverpool Central School District, serving ninth to twelfth grade students. It is the only hi ...

,databaseFootball.com, Players
Chris Gedney
; retrieved February 14, 2012. where he played

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

for the Liverpool Warriors.

College career

While attending Syracuse University, he played for the Syracuse Orange football team from 1989 to 1992. As a senior in 1992, he was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American.

Professional career

The Chicago Bears selected Gedney in the third round (61st overall pick) in the

1993 NFL Draft The 1993 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 25–26, 1993, at the Marriot Ma ...

. He played for the Bears from to .Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players
Chris Gedney profile
retrieved February 14, 2012. He later played for the Arizona Cardinals from to . His most productive season came in 1997, where he caught 23 passes for 261 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Life after football

Gedney lived in Syracuse, New York. He previously worked as the Development Liaison for the Syracuse Football Lettermen's Club and was an analyst for the Syracuse Sports Network. On April 29, 2010, Gedney was promoted to Senior Associate Athletic Director for Major Gifts at Syracuse University.

Death

Gedney died by suicide on March 9, 2018, by gunshot to the neck aged 47.Stephen Bailey
Former Syracuse football star Chris Gedney dies at age 47
Syracuse.com, March 9, 2018, accessed March 9, 2018. A brain autopsy performed by the

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with ...

CTE Center and Brain Bank determined that Gedney had had stage II

chronic traumatic encephalopathy Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a neurodegenerative disease linked to repeated trauma to the head. The encephalopathy symptoms can include behavioral problems, mood problems, and problems with thinking. The disease often gets worse ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gedney, Chris 1970 births 2018 deaths 2018 suicides People from Liverpool, New York Sportspeople from Onondaga County, New York All-American college football players American football tight ends Arizona Cardinals players Chicago Bears players Syracuse Orange football players Players of American football from New York (state) Players of American football from Wilmington, Delaware Suicides by firearm in New York (state) Players of American football with chronic traumatic encephalopathy Liverpool High School alumni