Denver Broncos tight end Chris Manhertz brought his unique success story back to Cardinal Spellman High School on Monday, leading 76 young players through a series of drills and some words of wisdom in a football clinic on Monday at The Bronx high school.

 

The day’s training included drills like those used at the annual NFL Combine to test speed and agility, a timed 40-yard dash, and gauntlet drills, where one player tests himself against a group of players in a number of skills such as running, blocking, or tackling. 

 

Manhertz is a current NFL player and Cardinal Spellman alumnus, but he never played a single snap at Spellman. The Bronx native played basketball in high school, then captained the Canisius College basketball team in Buffalo before deciding to try his hand at football. Since getting an initial tryout with the Buffalo Bills in 2015, he has been associated with five NFL teams. In 2021, while with the Jacksonville Jaguars, he caught the first touchdown pass from former Clemson University star quarterback Trevor Lawrence. In March, he signed a two-year deal with the Denver Broncos.

 

“It means everything to me. Just going back to where I came from, where it all started, and more importantly for me, it’s about the kids. It’s about giving them experiences that probably I never had,” Manhertz said in a television interview before the camp.