The Green Bay Packers have moved on from a number of players who went on to do great things. Davante Adams has shown the league that, no matter who his quarterback is, he’s still one of the best wide receivers in the game. Corey Linsley is in the midst of a great stint with the Los Angeles Chargers.
This season, Aaron Jones and Aaron Rodgers have the opportunity to show the league that they are still at the top of their game after the Packers decided to move on. However, one former Packers wide receiver is trying his hand at professional basketball.
One Former Green Bay Packers Wide Receiver Is Playing Professional Basketball
Robin Adams of Wisconsin Sports Heroics first reported the news for our site:
Former Packers wide receiver Devin Funchess is doing something that no former NFL player has ever done: playing professional basketball.
Funchess never appeared in a regular season game for the Packers. After four seasons with the Carolina Panthers and one with the Indianapolis Colts, he signed with the Packers as a free agent in April of 2020. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the fragile health of his family members, he opted out of that season in August.
While he did appear in preseason games for the Packers in 2021, he did not make the roster. After failing to make the Detroit Lions’ roster in 2022, his football career is over.
Now, Funchess is pursuing another sport: basketball. Former Packers reporter Kassidy Hill now works for the Panthers and interviewed Funchess about his career change. According to her, Funchess promised his grandfather that a basketball career is something he would try when his football days were over:
“I told my grandfather, I said, man, I’m going to go win the Super Bowl and then I’m going straight to basketball.”
According to Hill, he also told his grandfather that after basketball, he would become a farmer.
Funchess has signed a contract to play a 28-game season with the Caribbean Storm Llaneros of the Professional Colombia Basketball league.
While it may not be the NBA or a high-profile European league, Funchess is the first former NFL player to have signed a professional basketball contract.
Packers Fans React To Funchess Playing Basketball
All that talk about nfl players can’t play in the nba got him doing side quests
— Fausi (@thatguyfausi) May 8, 2024
Add this to the list of headlines I didn’t think I would see today.
— Fazir Ali (@KingFazir) May 8, 2024
‘Packers Legend’ –@AaronNagler
— organized atoms (@archersdad) May 8, 2024
Former #Panthers WR Devin Funchess has signed a deal with the Caribbean Storm Llaneros of the Professional Colombia Basketball league.
Funchess is the first former NFL player to go on and sign a professional basketball contract.
Here are his highlights:pic.twitter.com/hyZuHp2KHo
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) May 8, 2024
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