Joshua Kelley | RB | UCLA
Elevator Pitch
Kelley joined the Bruins after spending his first two seasons with UC-Davis. He started his junior and senior seasons for UCLA, being a consistently productive player for them. His physical, downhill style of play fits in naturally with most NFL offensive schemes.
Vitals
Height | 5-11
Weight | 212
Class | Redshirt Senior
Strengths
Kelley runs with good contact balance. Not a back that is easily taken down on first contact. His strong lower half of the frame allows him to power through weak arm tackles. He will square his shoulders to pop defenders attempting to bring him down. Has the athleticism to leap over a defender bracing for the big hit from Kelley.
Despite his power, he does possess some quickness to elude defenders in open space. He can evade tackles with a stutter step and then he is off to the races in the third level of a defense. Hard man to bring down one on one in space. Will get skinny by contorting his body angle to get through the hole as well.
Kelly showed that he can contribute in the passing game as a receiver but needs more work in terms of getting touches. Shows to be a decent blocker. He really wins in the red zone as a downhill runner. Has the power to carry defenders into the endzone.
Weaknesses
Kelley has issues with his vision, needs to work on setting up blocks and running into openings. Often times he ran into contact with other options available. Despite that he can evade tackles, he needs to do a better job of making defenders miss at the second and third levels. Not as athletic in terms of change of direction and short area quickness as you would like.
Kelley could find himself getting flagged at the next level due to how much he lowers his helmet on runs. Needs to keep the head up which should help with some of his vision. He will also need work with his running style as he leans forward a bit much and his pad level is a bit high. Small things that NFL coaches can work with.
Projection: Day 3
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