In 89 days, New Orleans Saints are will face the Arizona Cardinals in the season opener at Caesars Superdome. Fun fact: the Saints haven't had a player wear 89 on the active roster since Rashid Shaheed did it in his 2022 rookie season.
We continue our countdown to kickoff with an unique path to the NFL, undrafted free agent Chris Tyree. Tyree is a five-year player who started his career at Notre Dame before finishing college at Virginia in his fifth and final year. The wide receiver didn't hear his name calle
Tyree's four years at Notre Dame were spent as a running back. He showed strong efficiency in his first three years in South Bend. He averaged 6.8, 4 and 4.4 yards per carry in those respective seasons.
After that, Notre Dame changed Tyree's usage and he became more of a receiving back. His 18.6 yards per carry led the country. He left Notre Dame after that and became a true wide receiver at Virginia.
Chris Tyree is one of two hybrid players the Saints picked up in 2024
Tyree isn’t the only hybrid on the Saints roster. This offseason, New Orleans picked up Velus Jones. He is a more veteran version of Tyree. Jones comes over to the Saints from the Carolina Panthers after a midseason trade from the Chicago Bears.
Jones was listed as a wide receiver with the Panthers and Bears. In New Orleans, Jones has been listed as a running back. In his three years since entering the league, Jones has had more carries than receptions in every year. the last two seasons, Jones had more Carrie’s than targets. The move to running back was just a matter of time.
That is the opposite path of Tyree. Tyree has primarily been a running back through his career. His flip to wide receiver in his final year of college continues to the professional level.
Former running back turned wide receiver or former wide receiver turned running back. The distinction doesn’t matter. Tyree has the potential to be another player who shows value in multiple roles to boost his stock.