News

St. Joseph, Mo. – Fullback Taylor Gentry watched the first five days of training camp from the sidelines. The Chiefs hoped the undrafted rookie would eventually be able join practices, but Gentry wasn’t able to pass his camp physical.

The Chiefs ultimately needed to make a decision regarding Gentry’s future. Coach Romeo Crennel announced after Tuesday’s walk-thru that the fullback would no longer be listed on the team’s roster.

“He wasn’t able to get on the field up to this point because of a physical and meeting with doctors and things. He couldn’t pass the physical, so he will no longer be on the team because of medical reasons.”

Crennel opted not to discuss specific details of Gentry’s injury, but he’d previously been a full participant in the Chiefs offseason program and accompanied the team on a volunteer trip to build homes in Joplin, Mo. shortly after minicamp concluded in June.

It’s a tough break for Gentry, who joined N.C. State as a walk-on after receiving just one scholarship offer to NCAA Division II UNC-Pembroke coming out of high school. He would become a starter by the end of his freshman season and served as the Wolfpack’s starting fullback for the next three years. He was also one of NC State’s top special teams players, captaining the unit three seasons and leading the team in special teams stops twice.

In Kansas City, Gentry was competing with at fullback with 2011 seventh-round draft pick Shane Bannon. Veteran Le’Ron McClain served as Kansas City’s fullback for all 16 games last season, but signed with San Diego as an unrestricted free agent during the offseason.

Gentry’s exit leaves Bannon as the only fullback in camp.

“We’ll see what’s out there and then decide what to do at that spot,” Crennel said. “We do have some options with our personnel groups, but we’ve worked out a couple of guys and looked at them. So we’ll decide what we need to do and go from there.”

Other Injury News

Rookie wide receiver Junior Hemingway, a seventh-round pick out of Michigan, left Monday’s practice early and did not return after going into the locker room with trainers. Crennel said Tuesday that Hemingway is battling a strained groin and will be held out of Tuesday night’s practice at Spratt Stadium.

In better news, the Chiefs received a pleasant surprise Tuesday morning when linebacker Brandon Siler was able to participate in the team’s walk-thru practice. Siler was on crutches just 24 hours earlier after injuring his ankle during Sunday’s full-padded practice.

“Siler was out there this morning at that surprised me,” Crennel said. “They were resting him yesterday and he was on crutches yesterday in meetings, but today he was walking around like a spring chicken. I think that he will probably get some reps tonight.”

Siler missed all of 2011 after injuring his Achilles in a preseason practice.