Getty Former Dallas Cowboys defensive end Azur Kamara reaches for the ball during an NFL game.
The Dallas Cowboys have entered their bye week at 6-2, while a former fan-favorite player is entering a new locker room with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Dallas has enjoyed a strong start to the 2022 season despite injury issues affecting stars like quarterback Dak Prescott and running back Ezekiel Elliott. Meanwhile, the Chiefs sit at 5-2 and are again looking like a serious competitor in the AFC.
Now, they’re adding reinforcements in the form of former Cowboys defensive end Azur Kamara. The NFL’s official waiver wire related the news of the signing, which became official on November 1.
Kamara was a fan-favorite during his time on Hard Knocks but has since been trying to find a consistent roster spot in the league since his release from Dallas last season. The 24-year-old is getting his next chance on the Chiefs’ practice squad, which he is joining as an “exception” signing due to his number of NFL appearances.
Kamara will have an uphill climb to be in consideration for Kansas City’s 53-man roster, but it’s a start for a player who has had a unique track to his NFL career.
Kamara’s Journey to Chiefs Organization
Unlike the majority of NFL players, Kamara did not start playing football until he was in high school. Born on the Ivory Coast, the 24-year-old spent the first decade of his life in northwest Africa until he and his family moved to Phoenix, Arizona.
Impressing with his athleticism, Kamara first attended junior college at Arizona Western to continue his college career. It didn’t take long for bigger programs to take notice, and the 6’4″, 235-pound defensive end took his talents to Kansas.
His numbers weren’t astounding by any means, earning just 4.5 sacks over two seasons with the Jayhawks, but it was clear he had the athleticism to be a raw NFL prospect. Dallas liked what they saw, and signed Kamara after the 2020 NFL draft as an undrafted free agent.
Unfortunately, Kamara’s first NFL season in 2020 was sidelined by an injury he suffered not long before the season began. The defensive end recovered and was able to earn game time in 2021 with the Cowboys, totaling three tackles in nine appearances according to NFL.com.
Dallas waived Kamara in December of 2021, with the Carolina Panthers swooping in to sign the defensive end. Kamara was then released from Carolina the following May, only for the Chiefs to sign him and release him during the preseason.
He has since spent time working out with various NFL teams but is now back in Kansas City.
Cowboys Release Trysten Hill
While Kamara gets back with the Chiefs, another defender will be looking for a new team after his Cowboys stint: Trysten Hill.
Hill was a second-round draft pick in the 2019 NFL draft but had struggled to live up to his draft billing. As Heavy’s Jonathan Adams recently covered, the release comes after Dallas was apparently trying to trade the defensive tackle before the November 1 trade deadline.
At the time of writing, no team has claimed Hill on waivers, although the expectation is that he will find a new home with another NFL team. If he does go through the waiver process without any team claiming him, he could come back to the Cowboys on the practice squad.