Chiefs Guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif Returning to Football
Several artifacts in the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Pro Football Today Gallery reflect the unique circumstances players and teams faced in completing the 2020 NFL season amid a global pandemic.
Of all the artifacts the Hall has collected to document how COVID-19 affected the game, few drew the widespread attention – and appreciation – from fans as did a set of medical scrubs.
Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, a guard on the Kansas City Chiefs, sent to the Hall a set of scrubs he wore after he opted out of the 2020 season. The NFL’s only medical doctor chose to return to his native Quebec, where he worked on relief and treatment efforts as an orderly in a long-term care facility.
This week, Duvernay-Tardif said in an Instagram post he’s ready to return to football.
A year ago, I was trading my football helmet and pads for a hospital gown and a pair of gloves. This experience changed me in a way that I never thought would be possible. I met extraordinary people that made so many sacrifices and took care of our vulnerable ones with so much passion and dedication. Those nurses, orderlies and doctors made me realize the difference between treating and caring for patients. It's now time for me to transition back into football but there is no doubt that those 10 months working part-time in a long term care facility will help me become a better physician. Thank you all for your sacrifices and your hard work.
Duvernay-Tardif’s scrubs remain on display at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Top Photos of NFL Season Revealed in Hall's 53rd Annual Photo Contest
Detroit Lions photographer captures photograph of the year.
Gold Jacket Spotlight: Fran Tarkenton Scrambles into Record Book
Tarkenton's legacy as one of the game’s great quarterbacks and its first true scrambler is remembered this week in the Gold Jacket Spotlight.