Ole Miss football fans know just how good Chad Kelly is on the field. That’s the reason some NFL team is going to come away with a steal this spring in the form of former Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly.
Long gone are the days of Chad being thought of as a first or second day draft pick. He has been pushed to the bottom of every major draft analysis and is absent in many mock drafts. The reliable Walterfootball.com has him going in the 6th round or later. That’s crazy to think about when the last guy that came through Oxford with similar statistics went first overall to the San Diego Chargers. Eli Manning has spent more than 10 years starting in the NFL. Of course, Eli didn’t have quite the past that Chad brings with him, but nobody is perfect. It seems people just love to hate Chad Kelly and Ole Miss football too lately.
Forget the Bible verses, the trip to Haiti and all of the volunteering trips he made while in Oxford. Forget about all the rave reviews he’s had with anyone he’s come into contact with over the last two years. For most people he’s still that kid with a bad attitude that got kicked off the Clemson football team. The fight at the bar in his hometown shortly after he signed with Ole Miss certainly didn’t help his case, but anyone who has followed the situation knew it was blown way out of proportion.
The Argument
Ole Miss Rebels Football
By all reliable accounts, Chad Kelly is a good guy. NFL teams that actually take the time to get to know him will see that. He already has all the football measurables you’d want in a NFL quarterback, besides height.
Kelly has a cannon for an arm, and was put on full display in the Georgia game this past year, when he threw 55 yard Hail Mary to Damarkus Lodge. The ball absolutely rockets out of his hand. Of course, he has the touch you want, just go watch replays of the first couple of games in 2015.
Kelly dropped the ball in Laquon Treadwell and Quincy Adeboyejo’s hands time after time. If nobody was open, Chad wasn’t against calling his own number. He had numerous clutch runs, no matter who was barrelling towards him. Reuben Foster, Kendall Beckwith, he didn’t care.
Kelly proved himself in the toughest conference in America, one that churns out NFL players left and right. Of course, he downed the great Crimson Tide in their own house, which was something that hadn’t been done since 2012. He inspired players around him. He’s tough, he’s also smart and he’s a gamer. He’s Brett Favre-esque.
The Future Is Uncertain
No one can say for certain if Chad Kelly will be the Prescott of the 2017 draft. However, as long as he works and stays out of trouble he will get his shot. Of course, he will definitely make some NFL general manager look like a very smart man when all is said and done.