How Patrick Mahomes' wedding inspired Chiefs star Kareem Hunt's stunning road to redemption after domestic violence controversy

After securing their third straight Super Bowl berth at the weekend, an emotional Travis Kelce fought back the tears when discussing a Kansas City Chiefs teammate he holds very close to his heart. 'That's my family right there man, I love that guy to death,' Kelce told reporters about running back Kareem Hunt. 'He's come a long way,' the tight end added. 'And he's really leading our team with his mentality and his style of play, and I love playing with him, man.'.

Few would have anticipated Hunt finding himself in this position a little over six years ago. Back in November 2018, the former Toledo college star, 23 at the time, was released by the Chiefs in disgrace when shocking footage of him shoving a female to the ground and kicking her in the hallway of a Cleveland hotel surfaced online. The pair were first seen trading words in the hallway as multiple people tried to separate them. Hunt was then captured pushing the woman before she responded by hitting him in the face.

Kareem Hunt has completed a stunning road to redemption with the Kansas City Chiefs. After two men escorted him down the hallway, Hunt eventually charged back out and collided with a man who knocked the woman over, before he kicked her in the leg and was pulled away. At the time of the incident, the female allegedly told police it started when Kareem kicked her out of his room after she refused to hook up with one of the men in his entourage. Kareem's friends, meanwhile, accused her of reacting furiously after being told to leave and even using the n-word.

No charges were filed against Hunt after the woman in question eventually stopped cooperating with authorities, yet the NFL still placed him on the commissioner's exempt list, before Kansas City opted to terminate his contract after claiming he had lied about the incident when quizzed on it. 'As part of our internal discussions with Kareem, several members of our management team spoke directly to him. Kareem was not truthful in those discussions. The video released today confirms that fact. We are releasing Kareem immediately,' a Chiefs statement read at the time.

Almost 18 months since being selected in the third round of the 2017 draft, Hunt - who led the NFL in rushing as a rookie in 2017 and was on course for another 1,000-yard season before his release - was briefly exiled from the NFL under a huge cloud after the video of the assault in Cleveland went viral. 'I deeply regret what I did,' he said in a brief statement after being released by the Chiefs. 'I hope to move on from this.'.

Fortunately for Hunt, just three months later he was offered a lifeline in the NFL by the Cleveland Browns. Hunt left the Chiefs in disgrace six-and-a-half years ago after he was seen assaulting a woman. The running back moved to the Cleveland Browns three months after his Chiefs release. He was issued an eight-game suspension upon signing for the Browns in February 2019. The Browns snapped up the free-agent running back in a move that raised eyebrows after his assault controversy, but his arrival in Cleveland allowed the NFL to finally hand him a punishment.

Hunt was officially suspended for eight games in March 2019 for violating personal-conduct policy, a penalty he fully accepted. 'I want to again apologize for my actions last year,' he said in a statement after receiving the suspension. 'I know that my behavior hurt a lot of people, and I again apologize to them. 'I respect the league's decision on discipline, and I appreciate the time I spent with Commissioner [Roger] Goodell last week. I'm grateful for my time with the Browns over the last month and thankful to all the people in the organization that have welcomed me. I also appreciate all of the support I received from my union through this process.

'My commitment to earning the trust of the league, my teammates, the organization and this community through my actions will continue, and I understand there is a lot of hard work ahead of me before I'm able to fully return to playing the game I love.'. After eventually returning to action in November of that year, Hunt went on to record 43 carries for 179 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns, plus 37 receptions for 285 receiving yards across eight appearances in the 2019 season.

He played another 56 times for Cleveland and racked up 736 carries for 2,834 rushing yards and 23 rushing touchdowns, as well as 110 receptions for 672 receiving yards, all while his former team won three Super Bowls in five years. Patrick Mahomes' Hawaii wedding in 2022 was the catalyst for his return to Kansas City. At the wedding Hunt caught up with Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, who felt he had matured.

Nevertheless, during what would turn out to be his penultimate season at Huntington Bank Field, the former Chiefs man put the wheels in motion for a stunning return to Kansas City when he attended star quarterback and good friend Patrick Mahomes' wedding in Hawaii. Hunt jetted out to the island in March 2022 to watch Patrick tie the knot with childhood sweetheart Brittany, and also in attendance was Chiefs head coach Andy Reid.