Former Chiefs player Maurice Leggett lands in Arena League

At the age of 32, former Kansas City Chiefs defensive back Maurice Leggett is still finding ways to earn money playing the sport he loves.

Nearly 10 years after his NFL playing career ended with the Kansas City Chiefs, longtime defensive back Maurice Leggett remains committed to playing football as long as he can. He’s still keeping his career alive, and his newest chapter has come with the Albany Empire of the Arena Football League (AFL).

The Empire are on the verge of the postseason, but a recent roster move brought Leggett aboard to help bolster the defense for the stretch run.

Leggett previously had one year of Arena League experience playing for the Utah-based franchise back in 2013. His former defensive coordinator is now also in Albany making the connection pretty easy. Leggett also signed with the Philadelphia AFL franchise for a stint but never actually suited up for them.

For the last five seasons, Leggett has played for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers from 2014-2018. In that time, he amassed 253 tackles and 16 interceptions. Unfortunately, injuries over the last couple years have set him back and he was released after this last season. It’s a lesson he also learned after suffering injuries with the Chiefs after a promising start, he told the Albany Times-Union.

"“I know it’s a grueling, hard business,” he said. “It’s tough. My first year was great, and the next two seasons with Kansas City were a little rough mentally. What I learned about it is that you can’t beat yourself up. You have to have a short memory. You can’t let the outside affect what you do on the field, because everything you do in your daily life affects your body.”"

After a college career at Valdosta State, Leggett signed with the Chiefs in 2008 after going undrafted. He ended up winning the Mack Lee Hill award, the first UDFA to do so (and something Andrew Wylie can claim as well after having won the award this past year).

Leggett ended up hurting his shoulder and being placed on injured reserve in two consecutive seasons before being released by K.C.