Fantasy Football: Jay Gruden says Rob Kelley looks headed for big season in Washington

Coach Jay Gruden says he loves running back Rob Kelley, but adds that the Redskins can still add a running back. Jamey Eisenberg looks at Kelley's Fantasy value.

PHOENIX -- Redskins running back Rob Kelley’s nickname is “Fat Rob,” which was given to him by one of his coaches at Tulane. Well, Fat Rob has a chance to eat this year, but we’re talking about his production.

Washington coach Jay Gruden spoke highly of Kelley at the NFL owner’s meeting on Tuesday, and Kelley could be headed for a breakout season. That would be great for Fantasy.

Last year, Kelley took over for an injured and ineffective Matt Jones, and he posted solid stats with 168 carries for 704 yards (4.2-yards per carry) and six touchdowns and 12 catches for 82 yards and a touchdown in just nine starts. The rookie free agent played well enough to make Gruden giddy about his outlook for this year.

“Oh man, I love Rob Kelley,” Gruden said. “I thought he played great. You throw a rookie free agent into the fire like that and see the way he played and competes. Not one time did I feel like it was too big for him ... I think Rob is going to be a great running back, I really do.”

Now, Gruden did caution that Kelley could face competition for playing time, and it might not be from his current teammates of Chris Thompson, Jones, Keith Marshall or Mack Brown. The Redskins hosted free agent Tim Hightower on a visit in March, and Gruden didn’t rule out adding a running back in the upcoming NFL Draft.

Washington picks at No. 17 overall in the first round, which could put the Redskins in range for Florida State running back Dalvin Cook or possibly Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey. LSU running back Leonard Fournette is expected to be gone by then. 

“There are some special players in this draft that if they’re available it will be hard to pass up, quite frankly,” Gruden said. “But if we don’t then I’m quite happy with the guys that we have.”

Gruden said Kelley did a good job in short-yardage situations and protecting the ball. He said Kelley will “get better in pass protection” and “for the most part he catches the ball.” Gruden also wants Kelley to stay healthy, which is key for Fantasy owners as well.

He battled a knee injury in the final week of the season, but in his last eight games (taking out Week 17 when he was hurt) he had at least nine Fantasy points in a standard league in five of those outings. He scored six touchdowns over that span, averaged at least 4.0-yards per carry in five games and also had at least two receptions in four of those games. 

Kelley is never going to be known as a great receiver out of the backfield (figure about 25-30 catches at best), especially with Thompson around, but he should dominate carries and work at the goal line. He should finish as a potential top-15 running back, and he’s worth drafting in Round 4 or 5 in standard leagues and Round 6 in PPR.

We’ll see if the Redskins add another running back as a free agent or in the NFL Draft. But if they don’t and Kelley keeps the starting job, look for Fat Rob to gobble up plenty of yards and touchdowns this year..