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The NFL season is finally underway, with the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs facing the Detroit Lions.
Despite the absence of key players like tight end Travis Kelce and defensive tackle Chris Jones, the Chiefs took a 14-7 in the second quarter via this touchdown pass by Patrick Mahomes to Blake Bell:
Blake Bell was born on August 7, 1991, to former defensive end (converted, ironically enough, from tight end) Mark Bell and his wife Sherry. Mark's twin brother Mike also played defensive end.
Currently, he is married to Lyndsay (nee Walter), whom he met at the University of Oklahoma. Bell and Lyndsay have been dating each other since their college days in 2013 and later got married in 2021.
They got married at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church. The couple also has a daughter, Brinleigh Ann, whom they welcomed in 2022.
A brief oveview of Blake Bell's football career
In his youth, Bell idolized then-Kansas City Chiefs star tight end Tony Gonzalez, but early in his career, he was pegged at quarterback, not moving to tight end until his senior season in college. He recalled the transition in an Oklahoma Sooners feature:
“If I could go back, I’d play more tight end. I feel like it’s the position that’s best for me. It fits me well.”
In the 2015 Draft, Bell went to the San Francisco 49ers with the 117th pick. He immediately faced a lot of competition and was named the fourth on his position's depth chart. but got to start against the New York Giants after Vernon Davis suffered a knee injury. (Davis was later traded to the Denver Broncos.)
He entered 2016 as the backup to Vance McDonald, ultimately ending with just eight catches for 85 yards in 13 appearances, before being waved after the 2017 preseason. Bell then had short stints in Minnesota and Jacksonville before playing in Kansas City, where he finally broke through with his first touchdown against the Houston Texans in the Divisional Round. He also had a nine-yard catch in Super Bowl LIV.
After a year with the Dallas Cowboys, Bell returned to the Chiefs in 2021. The following season, he had his first-ever regular-season touchdown in Week 17 against the Denver Broncos. He won his second Super Bowl ring against the Philadelphia Eagles a month later, though he did not play.
