Kelley Beats Fat-Chance Odds

Robert Kelley’s rise from undrafted free agent to starting running back for the Washington Redskins, on the surface, sounds like the premise for a Hollywood movie.

- Ben Standig

Then again, it’s not that uncommon of a tale in the NFL, especially at a position where depth chart changes occur often. The question is how Kelley’s story ends. Cliché or not, the happy Disney version would make audiences swoon. It’s also conceivable “Fat Rob” eventually turns into a pumpkin.

That’s partly due to the disposal nature of the NFL running back in the modern era. Some teams lean heavily on a true lead back like Dallas standout Ezekiel Elliott or feature a multi-dimensional threat like Pittsburgh’s Le’Veon Bell. Otherwise, the trend involves a committee approach where several players enter depending on down and distance or game situations.

The Redskins are something of a hybrid. Chris Thompson handles obvious passing-down situations, but rarely little more unless Washington is forced to the air. Since Kelley took over as the starter for Matt Jones midway through the 2016 season, he served as the early-down option despite lacking any overt physical traits coaches covet.

Kelley lacks breakaway speed. Though listed at 233 pounds, nobody confuses him with John Riggins’ diesel display when squaring off with defenders. When the Redskins selected power-packed runner Samaje Perine in the fourth round of the 2017 draft, many league observers immediately proclaimed the new guy Washington’s starter.