Spencer Shrader — the newest member of the Kansas City Chiefs — plopped into the front row of his United flight last week only to see something encouraging in the seat next to him.

Or, in this case, someone. The passenger beside him — on a nonstop from Newark, New Jersey to Kansas City — was wearing a Chiefs sweatshirt.

The two started a conversation, with the man telling Shrader about all his favorite players on the team.

“Yeah,” Shrader told him, “hopefully I get to meet some of them tomorrow.”

Shrader smiles when telling the flight story Wednesday in the Chiefs locker room, explaining how he shared he was the team’s new kicker to the unsuspecting person next to him.

“Then he was asking a bunch of questions,” Shrader said with a grin. “It was pretty cool.”

It was just part of a whirlwind week for Shrader, who has been thrust into the Chiefs’ starting kicker role after Harrison Butker suffered a recent knee injury; Shrader was with the New York Jets practice squad last week when he decided to sign with the Chiefs.

So why take this opportunity, even if it might only last a short time?

Shrader said Wednesday it centered around thinking about the person — and athlete — he wants to be 5 and 10 years from now.

“I think the more that you can experience in a rookie year, the better,” Shrader told The Star. “So being here has certainly been a blessing, because you get to learn from the best. You’re at an amazing culture with a great team, a lot of really professional guys who’ve been doing it the right way. So for me, I just view it as a growth opportunity.”

The past week is just the latest chapter in a life where Shrader’s squeezed a whole bunch into his 25 years.

The former soccer star was home-schooled but still able to play sports with a local high school in Florida. He didn’t start football until his senior year of high school when a coach asked him to give it a shot; he began by watching YouTube videos to improve his form, while also having his parents, Steve and Amber, shag footballs for him on a local practice field.

Shrader then spent a year out of high school playing semi-pro soccer in Brazil and Canada before injuring his ankle. After that, the Lithia, Florida native contacted South Florida’s football team to see if it would be interested in a kicker. He walked onto the team in 2019, quickly earned a scholarship, then spent his final college season as a grad transfer at Notre Dame before earning NFL jobs this season with the Indianapolis Colts, Jets and Chiefs.

“You can go back and kind of look at the background, you’re like, ‘How is this guy even in the NFL?’” Shrader said with a laugh. “All that stuff, I think, just helps you become prepared. It’s just really cool adventures, opportunities, and just happy that I’m here right now around this team.”

Shrader was perfect on three extra-point attempts in his Chiefs debut Sunday, a 30-21 road loss to the Buffalo Bills. That was after a quick introduction to his new team — and him relaying that quite a few Bills fans screamed to him about how difficult it is to kick at Highmark Stadium.

Those words didn’t affect him. Shrader showed off his big leg then, with a few practice tries sailing over the end-zone net.

“Adrenaline was going a little bit,” Shrader said.

His decision to join the Chiefs last Thursday kicked off a few chaotic hours.

Shrader received a text from his agent in the afternoon to say the Chiefs were interested. After practicing with the New York Jets that day, he accepted KC’s offer, returning to his hotel to fling items into a duffel bag before attempting to make his 7 p.m. flight in Newark.

He also had to quickly decide what to do with his Ford Raptor truck, which he’d just purchased earlier that week. Jets punter Thomas Morstead offered his driveway, so Shrader drove his vehicle there and gave his former teammate the keys with one joking set of instructions: “No joyrides over the weekend.”

Next was an Uber to the airport, and Shrader getting to the terminal just 15 minutes before his flight to KC took off.

“It’s been crazy,” Shrader said.

Even if his Chiefs tenure only lasts a few weeks, Shrader promises to make the most of it. The experience could help him both personally and professionally, as Shrader already owns a private training company in Florida with his sister, Sophie, and previously founded his own technology company.

So what has he learned about being a successful organization in his short time with the Chiefs? Shrader pulled out his cell phone in the locker room Wednesday to share some notes he’d already jotted down to share with friends:

1. The Chiefs overcommunicate with their players in a precise and professional way;

2. The Chiefs focus on little touches that go a long way, whether that’s giving players gift bags at road hotels or providing an extra loop in each locker cubby;

3. The Chiefs put a significant emphasis on introductions to create camaraderie and build culture;

4. The Chiefs have a lot of fun and enjoy their work while not allowing that joy to take away from the team locking in on the week’s objectives.

Most of all, Shrader said he hopes to make a few field goals and “just do the best I can for the team” over the next few weeks.

“Just take this process ... not take a single moment for granted,” Shrader said. “Understand what a blessing it is to be here, to have this opportunity and to maximize this time just being an athlete.”