Chiefs running back Elijah Young tells Arrowhead Addict all about his journey to the pros, how camp is going, and what Brett Veach saw in him.
Elijah Young's mercurial journey to the Kansas City Chiefs roster has prepared him for this moment. The grueling nature of an Andy Reid training camp mirrors the nature of competition in the Chiefs' backfield, but Young says he's a competitor first and foremost—forged by the fires required to stay on top at every level of football so far.
From being named Tennessee's Gatorade Player of the Year to a tough decision to transfer away from Missouri to getting called by the Chiefs to fulfill a lifelong dream, Young has labored hard to get to St. Joseph. Now, he's just hoping that stacking one good practice upon another will yield the desired results.
After a dynamic season at Western Kentucky in which he caught nearly 50 passes and showcased elite speed at his pro day, it's clear why the Chiefs wanted to take a closer look.
We recently sat down with Young in the midst of Chiefs training camp to hear more about how camp is going, his first taste of K.C. BBQ, and what it's been like to share a locker room with some personal heroes.
Let’s start with where you’re at now. Andy Reid’s camps have a reputation as being rather grueling. Are you feeling that?
[Laughs] You know, I came in thinking that all camps are like this, just hot and grinding. But after talking to a lot of the vets, they’ve said this is one of the hardest camps you'll probably be in out of all teams.
Take me to the point where you were interacting with the Chiefs in the first place or knew you’d be on the roster. What was that like?
It’s crazy. Going into my draft combine thing—pre-draft—I had a workout for the Titans. They were close, brought a couple of guys in, worked out for them. Then let’s go to my Pro Day. I ran fast, jumped well, had a great Pro Day. Talked to a lot of coaches, got a lot of numbers, and they said they’d be in touch.
We get to the draft, and I was getting calls from Green Bay. Talking heavily to them. Then on the third day of the draft, that morning, the Chiefs called. They were like, ‘Hey, for some reason we didn’t have your draft phone number,’ and made sure they got it. Said they were talking to the GM and would be in touch.
Toward the end of the draft, they said, “Hey, we want you to sign with us as an undrafted free agent.” We just locked in from there. It ain’t really starting to feel real until I walked into the locker room and saw my name on the locker. That’s really when it got real for me. I’m like, ‘This is happening right now.’
Do you remember getting emotional in that moment.
Nah, it just pushed me more. It’s like, ‘Now you’re here so what now? You can’t just stop. This is just the start. You gotta keep going.’
Is it weird to look around and see, ‘Okay there’s my nameplate. There’s Travis. There’s Pat. There’s Chris.'?
So I think the first day to the vets had to come back. It was weird. Back in high school, I won Gatorade Player of the Year. They had videos where it was an NFL player that announced the winner of that award. I had two of them: athlete of the year and then football player of the year.
So the football player of the year, Pat Mahomes actually said, ‘Hey, Elijah, you want this? Good luck at Missouri!’ Then the other one had Drew Brees announcing it. So I ended up showing Mahomes that video and he was like, ‘Yeah, bro, that's crazy. Now look at us on the same team. It was meant to be!’
Then, there’s Trey Smith. With me being down the street from the University of Tennessee, I went to a lot of UT games. So I'm in there and Trey stopped me like, ‘What's up bro? I'm Trey Smith.’ I'm like, ‘You probably don't remember me, bro, but we met before,’ and I showed him a picture of me and him from being in the locker room when they beat Belmont. It was all crazy and now we all want the same thing.
You mentioned a couple of things I'd like to revisit. You mentioned the draft, and I'm assuming that had to be tough. Can you talk about how that weekend was for you? What did you expect?
I had a pretty good year, but I was just telling myself, ‘Hey, you’re gonna get the shot. You just gotta take full advantage of it.’ You don't know when your name gonna be called, but you just gotta be ready for it. So it was really just me training nonstop.
I feel like the main thing was getting the family ready for the draft. I brought them together, and I was like, ‘Look, just don't be surprised if we don't get called. Just know I'm good. I don't want no big party or nothing. You feel me? Just all close friends and family.’ And so that's just what it was.
When you get with the Chiefs, are they telling you specifically like, ‘Hey, Elijah, here's what we like about you’? Do they tell you what they envision for you?
Oh, they were just saying like, I'm an explosive player. You know, I'm physical, and I can also make a guy miss. So they were saying I might, I just fit their scheme well.
You mentioned Missouri, too, with Mahomes’ announcement video. You went there but finished at Western Kentucky. Were you frustrated at Missouri?
Being completely honest, I loved Missouri. I didn't want to leave. This was my first school. I was there for three years. I was in love with the atmosphere, the people, the players, everything. It was just me looking at it like, ‘I love all these people, but if it's meant to be, I will see these people again.’ I just knew I wasn't where I wanted to be football-wise.
Where did you want to be football-wise?
My role there was more special teams, and I felt like I could have helped us out a lot on the offensive side. New guys kept coming in and was going in front of me, you know? So I'm like, ‘Okay, it happens. You just can't get down on it. You just gotta do what you gotta do.’ So we finished up that season and we had a great season. I played my role well. And that was what it was.
What do you learn about yourself in a transition like that?
In a transition like that, you can't be down on yourself. You gotta always just do what you can do, you know? Put your best foot forward and just attack. At the end of the day, I’ll always compete. I'm competitive as hell. That's just me. It's gonna always be me, regardless.
Do you think that set you up well for where you're at now in K.C.?
Yes, yes. I feel like just me being competitive helps feed me and everyone around me. So me being competitive is gonna make the next person also better.
By the way, you caught 47 passes in your final season for the Hilltoppers. That is a pretty great total out of the backfield. Is that what you’re envisioning for your potential in K.C.?
Indeed. But this first year, my main priority is first making that 53 and being huge on special teams. I'm taking pride in that, and I'm doing everything I can to put my best foot forward.
What are you learning from Coach Toub?
Oh yeah, that's my guy. He’s teaching me everything about the pros: what he's looking for, what we should look for in different formations, line adjustments, everything like that. I'm just taking everything in. I'm soaking everything in like a sponge, even from the vets
We're talking all about football, but that's not the whole of a person. What else are you into away from the game?
Well, I love to game. I stream a lot. Well, I did until I got into camp and stuff. I love food. I love cars and music. So even me just going on a little drive, I love to just visit places.
Have you had any barbecue yet?
I have! Let me see where I'm at. I went to Q39.
You get the burnt ends?
I got the burnt ends, yeah. There’s actually a lot of spots out here for sure!