Former Pitt TE Nakia Griffin-Stewart among Four Practice Squad Activations for Chiefs vs. Steelers

Former Pitt tight end Nakia Griffin-Stewart is among four players the Kansas City Chiefs have elevated from their practice squad as COVID-19 replacements for Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Griffin-Stewart, defensive backs Dicaprio Bootle and Josh Jackson and punter Johnny Townsend were all activated as COVID-19 replacements on Saturday.

Griffin-Stewart will be seeing his first NFL action if called upon by the Chiefs. A 6-foot-5, 260-pound tight end, Griffin-Stewart signed with the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent in April 2020. After being released before the regular season, he spent time on the Green Bay Packers practice squad in 2020, but was not activated for a game. He caught on with Kansas City this season, joining the practice squad on Nov. 2.

In one season at Pitt in 2019, Griffin-Stewart caught 19 passes for 185 yards and a touchdown. He joined the Panthers after spending four seasons at Rutgers in his native New Jersey.

Griffin-Stewart’s activation appears to be insurance for tight end Travis Kelce, who is on the active roster, but must clear one more COVID-19 test before he can play on Sunday.

Bootle is an undrafted free agent from Nebraska that will be playing in his third game. He has one tackle.

Jackson is a fourth-year pro that spent three seasons in Green Bay and one a starter. He was also activated by Kansas City against the Raiders on Dec. 12 and had one tackle.

Townsend is the brother of usual Chiefs punter Tommy Townsend, who is on the COVID-19 list. Johnny Townsend has picked in three games this season, all with the Tennessee Titans, and averaged 43.2 yards per punt gross.