Elandon Roberts

Elandon Roberts (born April 22, 1994) is an American football linebacker for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at University of Houston.[1] He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the sixth round of the 2016 NFL Draft.[2] He plays primarily as a linebacker on defense, but when injuries during the 2019 season left the Patriots without a fullback on the roster, Roberts began to play that position as well.

Elandon Roberts
Roberts in the 2017 NFL season.
No. 44 – Miami Dolphins
Position:Linebacker\Fullback
Personal information
Born: (1994-04-22) April 22, 1994
Port Arthur, Texas
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:238 lb (108 kg)
Career information
High school:Memorial (Port Arthur, Texas)
College:Houston
Morgan State
NFL Draft:2016 / Round: 6 / Pick: 214
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2020
Total tackles:267
Sacks:5.5
Forced fumbles:2
Fumble recoveries:2
Interceptions:0
Pass deflections:6
Touchdowns:1
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Early years

Roberts attended Memorial High School in Port Arthur, Texas.[3] He was a member of both the football team and the track & field team.[4]

College career

Roberts played college football for Morgan State as a freshman linebacker in 2012. He finished the season with 107 tackles to lead the team and finish second in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) while at Morgan State University which competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision. The 107 tackle total marked the second-best single-season effort in program history, and He also had nine tackles for a loss, two sacks, one interception, and two pass breakups as well. Roberts was named to the All-MEAC second team in 2012 and finished 11th in the Jerry Rice Award, given to the nation's top freshman on the FCS level. Roberts was also named the MEAC Rookie of the Week three times.[5]

After his freshman season, Roberts transferred to play football at University of Houston from 2013 - 2015. In 2013, he saw action in eight games as a backup linebacker.[6] As a junior in 2014, Roberts appeared in 12 games as a linebacker and on special teams.[7] As a senior in 2015, Roberts was a team captain and had 142 total tackles which was good enough to lead the American Conference and place him fourth in the nation.[8] However, his 88 solo tackles led all of the FBS.[9]

Professional career

On December 22, 2015, it was announced that Roberts had accepted his invitation to play in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl.[10] On January 23, 2016, Roberts recorded one tackle for a four-yard loss during the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl and was part of Mike Holmgren's National team that defeated the American team 18–17. On March 24, 2016, He participated at Houston's pro day and had an impressive performance. Multiple scouts stated they were impressed with his power, mobility, and his performance in positional drills supervised by Houston Texans’ defensive coordinator Mike Vrabel.[11] At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, the majority of NFL draft experts and scouts projected Roberts to be a sixth or seventh round pick with some expecting him to be selected as early as the fourth or fifth round. He was ranked as the tenth best inside linebacker prospect in the draft by DraftScout.com.[12]

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeight40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 3⁄8 in
(1.84 m)		 234 lb
(106 kg)		 4.40 s1.67 s2.64 s4.26 s7.20 s36 in
(0.91 m)		10 ft 0 in
(3.05 m)		25 reps
All values from Houston’s Pro Day[12][11]

New England Patriots

The New England Patriots selected Roberts in the sixth round (214th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft. Roberts was the 27th linebacker drafted in 2016.[13]

External video
Patriots draft Elandon Roberts 214th overall

On May 7, 2016, the New England Patriots signed Roberts to a four-year, $2.44 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $100,356.[14]

Throughout training camp, Roberts competed against Kamu Grugier-Hill, Rufus Johnson, Kevin Snyder, and C. J. Johnson for a roster spot as a backup linebacker.[15][16] Head coach Bill Belichick named Roberts the backup middle linebacker to begin the regular season, behind Dont’a Hightower.[17]

He made his first NFL start on October 16, 2016, against the Cincinnati Bengals and tied for second highest tackles on the team with seven in the win.[4][18] In Week 16 against the New York Jets, Roberts led the team with 11 tackles including a forced fumble recovered by Malcolm Butler.[19] On February 5, 2017, Roberts was part of the Patriots team that won Super Bowl LI. In the game, he recorded two tackles as the Patriots defeated the Atlanta Falcons by a score of 34–28 in overtime.[20][21] The Patriots trailed 28–3 in the third quarter, but rallied all the way back to win the game which featured the first overtime game in Super Bowl history and the largest comeback in the Super Bowl.[22][23]

Roberts entered the 2017 as one of the Patriots' starting linebackers. He recorded his first two career sacks in a Week 12 win over the Miami Dolphins.[24] Overall, in the 2017 season, he recorded 67 total tackles, two sacks, one pass defended, and one fumble recovery.[25] Roberts helped the Patriots reach Super Bowl LII, but lost 41–33 to the Philadelphia Eagles with him recording six tackles in the game.[26]

In 2018, Roberts played all 16 games and started in 11. The Patriots finished the season 11–5 and Roberts recorded 65 tackles, one sack, and four passes defended on the season.[27] The Patriots reached Super Bowl LIII after defeating both the Los Angeles Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs in the playoffs.[28][29] In the Super Bowl, Roberts recorded one tackle in the team's 13–3 victory against the Los Angeles Rams.[30]

In 2019, Roberts was voted a team defensive captain for the first time, replacing safety Patrick Chung.[31] He was a member of the team's high-performing linebacker corps, dubbed "The Boogeymen" by teammate Dont'a Hightower. Starting in Week 7, he began to play on offense as well as defense, where he was primarily used as a fullback after injuries to teammates James Develin and Jakob Johnson. Roberts finished the season with 29 tackles, a sack, a pass defense, and a tackle for loss.[32]

Roberts scored his first career touchdown against the Miami Dolphins on December 29, 2019, when he caught a 38-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady during the 27–24 loss.[33]

Miami Dolphins

On March 24, 2020, the Miami Dolphins signed Roberts to a one-year, $2 million contract that includes a $1 million signing bonus.[34][35] The signing reunited Roberts with Miami Dolphins’ head coach Brian Flores, who had previously been the linebackers coach for the New England Patriots. Roberts was also reunited with former Patriots linebackers Kyle Van Noy and Kamu Grugier-Hill. He was named a starting inside linebacker alongside Jerome Baker. He played in 13 games with 11 starts, recording 61 tackles, 1.5 sacks, one forced fumble and a fumble recovery. On December 31, 2020, Roberts was placed on injured reserve.

Personal life

Roberts has three siblings. His older brother, Eli Roberts, graduated from Sam Houston State University with a major in Criminal Justice. His older sister, Elexsia Roberts, graduated from Wiley College in Education. Younger Sister Elondria Roberts is a current student at Lamar University in Beaumont. His cousin Jermire played football at Iowa and his cousin Calvin played football at Oklahoma State.[4][36][37]

References
  1. Houston Cougars Biography
  2. Patriots Select Houston Linebacker Elandon Roberts 214th Overall
  3. Young, Matt (January 23, 2019). "Former Houston area high school stars in Super Bowl LIII". HoustonChronicle.com. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
  4. "New England Patriots Player Bio". Elandon Roberts Bio - New England Patriots. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  5. "Elandon Roberts Player Bio". UH Cougars 44 - Elandon Roberts. CBS Interactive Media. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  6. "Elandon Roberts 2013 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  7. "Elandon Roberts 2014 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  8. "Elandon Roberts 2015 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  9. "Elandon Roberts College Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  10. "Roberts Invited to NFLPA Collegiate Bowl". UHCougars.com. December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  11. Aaron Wilson (March 25, 2016). "UH Linebacker Elandon Roberts boosts stock at Pro Day - Houston Chronicle". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  12. "Elandon Roberts, DS #10 ILB, Houston". DraftScout.com. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  13. "2016 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  14. "Spotrac.com: Elandon Roberts contract". Spotrac.com. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  15. "New England Patriots roster projection: D.J. Foster, Aaron Dobson, Clay Harbor make the cut". blog.masslive.com. June 14, 2016. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  16. Perry, Phil (September 1, 2016). "Five Patriots players who can help themselves in preseason finale". nbcsports.com. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  17. Hill, Phil (September 4, 2016). "New England Patriots 2016 depth chart and team needs after final 53-man roster cuts". PatsPulpit.com. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  18. "Cincinnati Bengals at New England Patriots - October 16th, 2016". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  19. "New England Patriots at New York Jets - November 27th, 2016". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  20. "Super Bowl LI - National Football League Game Summary" (PDF). National Football League. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 7, 2017. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  21. "Super Bowl LI - New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons - February 5th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  22. Wesseling, Chris. "New England Patriots win Super Bowl LI". NFL. Retrieved February 5, 2017.
  23. Clarke, Liz. "Julian Edelman’s Super Bowl miracle catch gives Patriots answer to David Tyree", The Washington Post, February 6, 2017
  24. "Miami Dolphins at New England Patriots - November 26th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  25. "Elandon Roberts 2017 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  26. "Super Bowl LII - Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots - February 4th, 2018". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
  27. "Elandon Roberts 2018 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
  28. "Divisional Round - Los Angeles Chargers at New England Patriots - January 13th, 2019". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
  29. "AFC Championship - New England Patriots at Kansas City Chiefs - January 20th, 2019". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
  30. "Super Bowl LIII - Los Angeles Rams vs. New England Patriots - February 3rd, 2019". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
  31. "Unfiltered Notebook 9/5: Captains announced as Pats prep for physical Steelers defense". Patriots.com. Retrieved September 5, 2019.
  32. "Elandon Roberts 2019 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
  33. "Dolphins stun Patriots 27-24, denying NE first-round bye". www.espn.com. Associated Press. December 29, 2019. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  34. https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/miami-dolphins/elandon-roberts-19168/
  35. Florio, Mike (March 21, 2020). "Dolphins announce deals with 10 unrestricted free agents". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
  36. "FOX Sports". Jermire Roberts - LB for the Iowa Hawkeyes | FOX Sports. Fox Sports Interactive Media, LLC. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  37. "Calvin Roberts". Oklahoma State University Athletics - Calvin Roberts. Oklahoma State University Athletics. June 21, 2006. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
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