Free-agent TE Chase Harrell suspended for entire 2021 NFL season

The NFL career of tight end Chase Harrell might be over before it ever truly began. 

ESPN's Field Yates tweeted Wednesday afternoon that Harrell has been suspended for the entire 2021 season. Per Cam Inman of The Mercury News, Harrell spent time with the San Francisco 49ers organization as an undrafted rookie in 2020 but was suspended for six games for violating the league's performance-enhancing drug policy last fall. 

Yates' update suggests Harrell may have failed a drug test or otherwise violated that same policy once again. 

The 49ers signed Harrell to a futures contract in January but waived him in April via a transaction that likely flew under the radar for the majority of casual football fans. As Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk explained, Harrell went unsigned up through Wednesday's development. 

Back in April, Kyle Madson of Niners Wire noted the 49ers could bring Harrell back at some point during the summer months if other options at the position went down to injuries. That's now out of the question, and Harrell may be destined to become barely a footnote in NFL history.