Chiefs love stories aren’t limited to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce.
Just ask former Kansas City backup quarterback Chase Daniel and his wife, Hillary, who recently detailed on Daniel’s YouTube channel how NFL free agency in 2013 served as something of a Hail Mary for the couple during their long-distance romance.
“He’s going into free agency for 2013, unrestricted free agent, and we know we’re not going back to New Orleans; we can sign anywhere. I was also like, gosh, I don’t know if I can keep doing this long-distance thing,” said Hillary, who served as a morning news anchor for an NBC affiliate in Topeka, Kansas.
“You found out very last minute, like, I hate to implicate anybody but, a couple of days before free agency, Chase texts me like, ‘Hey, by the way, the Chiefs are interested,’ and if you’re familiar with the geography of the Midwest, well, Topeka is in the viewing area of … the Chiefs. And I remember texting him like, I’m not going to get my hopes up here because that would be amazing.”
The “amazing” moment came to fruition in March 2013 when the Chiefs and Daniel agreed to a pact with the quarterback backing up Alex Smith.
“Chase texts me, I remember Sunday night I was staying the night at my parents’, and you’re like, ‘I think I’m going to be a Chief,’ and I remember that day and the day you signed, probably like top-five core memories from our relationship… Happiest, most exciting moments,” Hillary said.
An undrafted free agent out of Mizzou in 2009, Daniel spent three seasons in Kansas City (2013 to 2015) before stints with the Eagles, Bears, Lions and Chargers. He returned to the Saints for the 2017 and retired in September 2023.
Daniel and Hillary tied the knot in 2014, the quarterback’s second year in Kansas City, and are parents to three children.
The Chiefs are currently in the midst of free agency as they look to move on from a dismal 6-11 season in 2025.
Kansas City has since added Super Bowl 2026 MVP Kenneth Walker from the Seahawks, and re-signed tight end Kelce, 36, to a one-year, $12 million contract.
Kelce, a three-time Super Bowl champion with the organization, is expected to wed Swift, also 36, before the start of the season.