Chad Kelly: The Next Taysom Hill?

Chad Kelly’s Backstory

The nephew of Bills’ legend Jim Kelly, Chad Kelly was drafted as Mr. Irrelavant in 2017 by the Denver Broncos. However, he had talent well beyond that grade. It was Kelly’s issues off the field that caused him to drop well below his talent level. Kelly had multiple altercations as a college athlete at both Clemson and Ole Miss. His off the field issues continued with Denver Broncos. As Kelly looked like he was going to become the starter of the team Kelly, in a drunken stupor, broke into an unsuspecting couples’ home and was arrested as a result. The Broncos then cut Kelly as a result of his actions.

Kelly signed with the Colts in 2019 and spent most of the season on and off the practice squad and the active roster. When Brissett got hurt, Kelly got called up to back up Brian Hoyer. Where it gets really interesting is when Brissett returned from his injuries the Colts, instead of cutting Kelly, carried three quarterbacks on their active roster. According to Stephen Holder of The Athletic, “the team was leery of leaving Kelly exposed to being poached by other teams”. This leads us to believe that the Colts value Chad Kelly.

Versatility Abound

The most notable information dubbed from Holder’s article was that Kelly had been playing positions other than QB on the scout team. There is reason to believe that versatility is a viable path for Chad Kelly. In four games of preseason play for the Colts, Kelly showed his athleticism. Kelly rushed for 107 yards and two touchdowns. He also had major success running the football in college. In ’15-’16 for Ole Miss Kelly rushed for a combined 841 yards and 15 TDs across 22 games. It is safe to say that Chad Kelly is enough of an athlete that if he could develop an ability to run routes he could develop a similar versatility to Taysom Hill. Kelly is no slouch throwing the football either. In 4 preseason games with the Colts, Kelly threw to a 94.7 QBR, completed 74% of his passes, and 583 passing yards.

What Chad Kelly’s Athleticism Could Be

What Chad Kelly could develop into is something very similar to Taysom Hill of the Saints. Taysom Hill is the most versatile player on the Saints roster. Hill has run routes as a tight end, quarterback, and plays on special teams. Expecting Chad Kelly to become Taysom Hill would be unfair. However, if Kelly can develop some route running with his athleticism he could become a threat on offense. Frank Reich would be able to run more trick plays with two QB’s on the field. Kelly would have the ability to pose a threat athletically on routes for any linebacker that may attempt to cover him. Finally, this would give even more value to the third-string QB on the Colts roster. Maximizing the value of every roster spot is something that every NFL team should be interested in doing. The Colts are no exception.

Follow me on Twitter at @sfgiantsera and follow us at @OT_Heroics for more great content!

Also, be sure to check out the Overtime Heroics Forums page to join in on the discussion!

Have a weight-loss or muscle building New Year’s resolution? Head on over to our partners at NutraKey. Whatever health goal you have, they can help. Use the link above or our promo code, OTH1 at checkout for 30% off!