Robert Kelley (American football)

Robert Kelley (born October 3, 1992), nicknamed "Fat Rob", is an American football running back. He played college football at Tulane, and was signed by the Washington Redskins as an undrafted free agent in 2016.

This article is about the former Washington Redskins running back. For the former New Orleans Saints safety, see Rob Kelly (American football).

Robert Kelley
Kelley with the Washington Redskins in 2017
Free agent
Position:Running back
Personal information
Born: (1992-10-03) October 3, 1992
New Orleans, Louisiana
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:233 lb (106 kg)
Career information
High school:O. Perry Walker (New Orleans, Louisiana)
College:Tulane
Undrafted:2016
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career NFL statistics as of 2020
Rushing yards:906
Rushing average:3.9
Rushing touchdowns:9
Receptions:16
Receiving yards:100
Receiving touchdowns:1
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Early years

Kelley attended and played football at O. Perry Walker High School.[1]

College career

Kelley attended and played college football at Tulane from 2011–2015.[2]

In the 2011 season, Kelley was part of a backfield dominated by Orleans Darkwa. Overall, he had 332 rushing yards, two rushing touchdowns, and 16 receptions for 178 receiving yards.[3] In the 2012 season, he had a team-high 286 rushing yards and 46 receptions for 340 yards and four receiving touchdowns.[4][5] In the 2013 season, he had 420 rushing yards, three rushing touchdowns, 18 receptions, 176 receiving yards, and a receiving touchdown.[6] In his final collegiate season in 2015, he shared the backfield with Dontrell Hilliard, Sherman Badie, Lazedrick Thompson, and Josh Rounds.[7] Overall, he had 232 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, six receptions, 33 receiving yards, and one receiving touchdown.[8]

Collegiate statistics
Year School Class Pos G Rush Yds Avg TD Rec Yds Avg TD
2011 Tulane RB 13 74 332 4.5 2 16 178 11.1 0
2012 Tulane SO RB 12 81 286 3.5 0 46 340 7.4 4
2013 Tulane JR RB 12 98 420 4.3 3 18 176 9.8 1
2015 Tulane SR RB 12 65 232 3.6 1 6 33 5.5 1
Career 318 1270 4.0 6 86 727 8.5 6

Professional career

Washington Redskins

On May 6, 2016, the Washington Redskins signed Kelley as an undrafted free agent after the 2016 NFL Draft.[9] On September 25, 2016, Kelley had his first rushing attempt of his career against the New York Giants.[10] On October 23, 2016, he scored his first career touchdown against the Detroit Lions, a one-yard reception from quarterback Kirk Cousins.[11][12] On October 30, 2016, Kelley made his first career start in place of an injured Matt Jones, where he rushed for 87 yards on 21 carries, while also scoring his first career rushing touchdown in a 27–27 tie with the Cincinnati Bengals.[12][13][14] After his starting debut, the team announced that Kelley would be the full-time starting running back.[15] On November 20, 2016, Kelley had his first multi-touchdown game after recording a career-high 137 rushing yards with three rushing touchdowns in a 42–24 victory over the Green Bay Packers on NBC Sunday Night Football.[16] Overall, he finished his rookie season with 704 rushing yards, six rushing touchdowns, 12 receptions, 82 receiving yards, and a receiving touchdown.[17]

In the 2017 season, Kelley's role diminished with the usage of Chris Thompson and Samaje Perine increasing.[18] He scored two touchdowns against the Seattle Seahawks in the Week 9 win.[19] He was placed on injured reserve on November 14, 2017, after re-aggravating a high ankle sprain and suffering an MCL sprain in Week 10.[20] Overall, he finished the 2017 season with 62 carries for 194 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns.[21]

Kelley was placed on injured reserve on September 18, 2018 with a toe injury.[22] He played two games in the 2018 season with only four carries for eight rushing yards.[23]

New Orleans Saints

On July 30, 2019, Kelley signed with the New Orleans Saints, but was waived four days later.[24][25]

Personal life

Kelley was born and raised in the 9th Ward district of New Orleans, until he and his parents lost their home as a result of Hurricane Katrina's effect on the city in August 2005.[26]

Kelley was arrested in July 2014 after a fellow student at Tulane claimed Kelley assaulted him and stole his bicycle.[27] Due to the arrest, Kelley was suspended from the football team and subsequently missed the entirety of the 2014 season due to him being academically ineligible.[28] The charges for the arrest were later dropped, and Kelley returned to the team for the 2015 season.[27]

Kelley's "Fat Rob" nickname originated during his senior year at Tulane, after his running backs coach bought him a backpack with the nickname ingraved on it.[29]

References
  1. Allen, Scott (August 26, 2016). "Redskins rookie's 'Fat Rob' nickname isn't all about weight". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  2. "Rob Kelley College Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  3. "2011 Tulane Green Wave Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  4. "Rob Kelley 2012 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  5. "2012 Tulane Green Wave Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  6. "Rob Kelley 2013 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  7. "2015 Tulane Green Wave Stats". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  8. "Rob Kelley 2015 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  9. Czarda, Stephen (May 6, 2016). "Redskins Sign 14 College Free Agents". Archived from the original on August 15, 2017. Retrieved October 30, 2016.
  10. "Rob Kelley: Game Logs at NFL.com". www.nfl.com. Retrieved October 30, 2016.
  11. Kring-Schreifels, Jake (October 23, 2016). "Robert Kelley Scores His First Career Touchdown". Retrieved October 30, 2016.
  12. "Robert Kelley Career Touchdown Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  13. McMillan, Keith (October 30, 2016). "Watch Rob Kelley plow into the end zone". Washington Post. Retrieved October 30, 2016.
  14. Lewis Jr, Lake (October 30, 2016). "Robert Kelley proves toughness against chippy Bengals defense". Redskins Wire. Retrieved October 30, 2016.
  15. Czarda, Stephen (November 10, 2016). "Robert Kelley Keeping It Simple As He Becomes Top Running Back". Redskins.com. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
  16. Czarda, Stephen. "Robert Kelley Goes Off On National Stage With Three Scores". Redskins.com. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  17. "Robert Kelley 2016 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  18. "2017 Washington Redskins Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  19. Czarda, Stephen (November 5, 2017). "Redskins Land Knockout Punch Late For Victory Over Seahawks". Redskins.com. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
  20. Czarda, Stephen (November 14, 2017). "Redskins Place Two On Injured Reserve, Sign Two To The Active Roster". Redskins.com. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  21. "Robert Kelley 2017 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  22. "Redskins Sign Breshad Perriman And Michael Floyd, Place Rob Kelley On Injured Reserve". Redskins.com. September 18, 2018. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
  23. "Robert Kelley 2018 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  24. Alper, Josh (July 30, 2019). "Saints add Rob Kelley to backfield". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports.
  25. "New Orleans Saints announce roster moves". NewOrleansSaints.com. August 3, 2019.
  26. "New #RedskinsTalk Podcast - Get to know Robert Kelley". csnmidatlantic.com. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  27. Dabe, Christopher. "Suspended Tulane running back Robert Kelley has charges dropped, court records say". NOLA.com. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  28. Smith, Guerry. "Robert Kelley in line to suit up for Tulane football team this fall". The New Orleans Advocate. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  29. Allen, Scott. "Redskins rookie's 'Fat Rob' nickname isn't all about weight". Washington Post. Retrieved November 14, 2016.
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