Chris Kuper

Last updated

Chris Kuper
Chris Kuper.JPG
Kuper in 2009
Minnesota Vikings
Position:Offensive line coach
Personal information
Born: (1982-12-19) December 19, 1982 (age 41)
Anchorage, Alaska, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:303 lb (137 kg)
Career information
High school: Anchorage (AK) Dimond
College: North Dakota
NFL draft: 2006  / Round: 5 / Pick: 161
Career history
As a player:
As a coach:
Career NFL statistics
Games played:90
Games started:79
Fumble recoveries:1
Player stats at PFR

Chris Kuper (born December 19, 1982) is a former American football offensive guard for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). The Broncos selected him in the fifth round of the 2006 NFL draft. He played college football for the University of North Dakota. He is currently the offensive line coach for the Minnesota Vikings.

Contents

Early life

Kuper played high school football at A. J. Dimond High School in Anchorage, Alaska where he helped the Lynx win the 2001 ASAA Large Schools State Championship.

As a senior, Kuper finished just behind Matt Gittlein of Wasilla High School as the state's Lineman of the Year.

College career

He played college football for the North Dakota Fighting Sioux. He was a three-year starter, awarded all-conference and All American honors since his junior campaign.

Professional career

Projected to go undrafted by Sports Illustrated , who criticized his lack of "balance, body control and ability in space," [1] Kuper was ranked as the No. 28 offensive guard available in the 2006 NFL draft. [2] Kuper was eventually selected in the fifth round, 161st overall, by the Denver Broncos. [3] He was the highest selected North Dakota lineman since Todd Thomas in 1981.

Kuper started 79-of-90 games played (68 at right guard) while playing his entire eight-year NFL career with the Broncos.

On June 4, 2010, the Broncos announced that they had signed Kuper to a five-year deal worth $25.5 million. [4] The new contract made him the second-highest-paid offensive lineman in Broncos' history, second only to former left tackle Matt Lepsis.

In 2010, the Denver Broncos announced that Kuper had been selected as co-captain of the Broncos offense, along with Kyle Orton and Daniel Graham. [5]

During the regular season finale in 2011 against the Kansas City Chiefs, Kuper suffered a gruesome broken ankle that ended his season. That season Chris Kuper made the Pro Bowl but withdrew due to the injury and needed surgery. [6]

A three-time captain, Kuper was recipient of the Ed Block Courage Award in 2012 as voted on by his teammates. [7]

Kuper retired on March 11, 2014. [8]

Coaching career

During the 2015 high school football season, Kuper was an offensive line coach at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado.

On January 23, 2016, Kuper was hired by Miami Dolphins as offensive quality control coach. [9] He then spent two seasons (2017–18) as the assistant offensive line coach for Miami.

On January 22, 2019, the Denver Broncos hired Kuper as their assistant offensive line coach. [10]

With the firing of Vic Fangio from the Broncos Kuper was hired by Kevin O'Connell to be the offensive line coach for the Minnesota Vikings.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Munchak</span> American football player and coach (born 1960)

Michael Anthony Munchak is an American former football player and coach. After playing college football for the Penn State Nittany Lions, Munchak played as a guard for the Houston Oilers of the National Football League (NFL), from 1982 until 1993 and was a nine-time selection to the Pro Bowl. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Koppen</span> American football player (born 1979)

Daniel Koppen is an American former professional football player who was a center for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the New England Patriots and Denver Broncos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evan Mathis</span> American football player (born 1981)

Evan Bradley Mathis is an American former football guard who played in the National Football League (NFL) for twelve seasons. He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, and was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the third round of the 2005 NFL draft. Mathis also played for the Miami Dolphins, Cincinnati Bengals, Philadelphia Eagles, Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vernon Carey</span> American football player (born 1981)

Vernon A. Carey Sr. is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle for eight seasons with the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Dolphins with the 19th overall pick in the 2004 NFL draft after playing college football for the Miami Hurricanes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Kubiak</span> American football player and coach (born 1961)

Gary Wayne Kubiak is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played as a quarterback for the Denver Broncos before coaching, serving as head coach for the Houston Texans from 2006 to 2013 and the Broncos from 2015 to 2016 before stepping down from the position on January 1, 2017, citing health reasons.

Leonard Ray Brown Jr. is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL) He played as a guard and tackle for 20 seasons. He became a coach, last serving as the offensive line coach for the Arizona Cardinals.

Ronald Lee Bradford is a former defensive back who played for the NFL's Denver Broncos (1993–1995), Arizona Cardinals (1996), Atlanta Falcons (1997–2001) and Minnesota Vikings. He also served as a defensive assistant coach for the Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs. Bradford was also the defensive backs coach at USC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Heckert Jr.</span> American football administrator (1967–2018)

Thomas Heckert Jr. was an American football executive who served as the general manager for the Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). In his 27-year career, Heckert was a part of 17 postseason campaigns, 11 division titles, eight conference championship games, three Super Bowl appearances and one Super Bowl Championship, while with the Denver Broncos.

Jeff Davidson is an American football coach who most recently served as the offensive line coach for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL) and is also a former player. He has also spent time as offensive line coach of the New England Patriots and Denver Broncos and as offensive coordinator of the Carolina Panthers and Cleveland Browns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Stenavich</span> American football player and coach (born 1983)

Adam Walter Stenavich is an American football coach and former offensive tackle who is the offensive coordinator for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as an assistant coach for the San Francisco 49ers, San Jose State University, Northern Arizona University and the University of Michigan.

Christopher Jerrod Hinton is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle for 13 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Indianapolis Colts franchise. In addition to his seven seasons with the Colts, he was a member of the Atlanta Falcons for four seasons and the Minnesota Vikings for two seasons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allen Barbre</span> American football player (born 1984)

Allen Wade Barbre is a former American football offensive guard. He was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the fourth round of the 2007 NFL draft. He played college football for Missouri Southern State University. He was also a member of the Seattle Seahawks, Miami Dolphins, Philadelphia Eagles, and Denver Broncos.

Richard Keith Uecker is a former guard in the National Football League (NFL) who played eight seasons for the Green Bay Packers and two for the Denver Broncos. Uecker is currently the offensive line coach and assistant head coach at Adrian College (Michigan), an NCAA Division III school.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orlando Franklin</span> Jamaican-born American football player (born 1987)

Orlando D. Franklin is a Jamaican-born former American football offensive tackle who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Miami, and was selected by the Denver Broncos in the second round of the 2011 NFL draft. He was also a member of the San Diego Chargers, New Orleans Saints, and Washington Redskins.

Nate Potter is an American football coach and former player who is currently the co-offensive coordinator and tight ends coach for the Boise State Broncos. He played college football as an offensive tackle also for the Broncos, where he was recognized as a consensus All-American. He was selected in the seventh round of the 2012 NFL draft by the Arizona Cardinals. Potter appeared in 21 games over two seasons before the Cardinals released him at the end of the 2014 preseason, after which he began his college coaching career.

Nathan Robert Hunt is a former American football center and a practice squad offensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL). Selected by the Indianapolis Colts of the NFL in the fifth round of the 2005 NFL draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sean Kugler</span> Former American football player and coach (born 1966)

Sean Patrick Kugler is an American football coach and current and offensive line coach for the DC Defenders of the United Football League (UFL). He previously served as the head coach at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) from 2013 to 2017. Kugler was an assistant coach in the NFL for the Detroit Lions (2001–2005), Buffalo Bills (2007–2009), Pittsburgh Steelers (2010–2012), and Denver Broncos (2018).

Samuel Callaghan Brenner is a former American football center. He was originally signed by the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent in 2013. Brenner played college football at Utah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billy Turner (American football)</span> American football player (born 1991)

William Mason Turner is an American football offensive tackle who is a free agent. He was selected by the Miami Dolphins in the third round of the 2014 NFL draft. He played college football at North Dakota State.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ja'Wuan James</span> American football player (born 1992)

Ja'Wuan Amir James is an American football offensive tackle who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft. He played college football at Tennessee. He has also played for the Denver Broncos and Baltimore Ravens.

References

  1. ↑ "SI.com - 2006 NFL Draft - Chris Kuper". Archived from the original on March 12, 2014. Retrieved December 18, 2012.
  2. ↑ "SI.com - 2006 NFL Draft - Breakdown by Position - OG". Archived from the original on November 12, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2012.
  3. ↑ "2006 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 10, 2023.
  4. ↑ Broncos sign OL Chris Kuper to five-year, $25.5 million extension
  5. ↑ "Denver Broncos".
  6. ↑ "Broncos guard Chris Kuper needs surgery, declines Pro Bowl". January 22, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Kuper Receives ed Block Courage Award".
  8. ↑ Klis, Mike (March 10, 2014). "Chris Kuper retiring after eight seasons as Broncos offensive lineman". The Denver Post. Retrieved August 14, 2024.
  9. ↑ Adam Caplan [@caplannfl] (January 23, 2016). "Former #Broncos G Chris Kuper added to #Dolphins coaching staff as offensive quality control coach" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  10. ↑ Denver Broncos [@Broncos] (January 22, 2019). "Official: We've named Chris Kuper as assistant offensive line coach" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.