Kelly Butler

Kelly Don Butler (born July 24, 1982) is a former professional gridiron football offensive lineman.[1] He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the sixth round of the 2004 NFL Draft. He played college football at Purdue.

Kelly Butler
No. 68, 71, 79
Position:Offensive lineman
Personal information
Born: (1982-06-24) June 24, 1982
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Height:6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Weight:317 lb (144 kg)
Career information
High school:Grand Rapids (MI) Union
College:Purdue
NFL Draft:2004 / Round: 6 / Pick: 172
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games played:22
Games started:21
Career Arena statistics
Receptions:1
Receiving Yards:10
Touchdowns:1
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR · CFL.ca (archive) · ArenaFan.com

Butler was a member of the Cleveland Browns, Arizona Cardinals, Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz and Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Outside of his involvement with the Blue Bombers, Butler often appears on Winnipeg based radio station CITI-FM, as a guest co-host of Wheeler in the Morning.

High school career

Butler attended Union High School, where he played football as well as basketball. He was a two-time All-City and All-Arena selection as a member of the school's football team. He was named an All-American, All-State and All-Regional selection as a senior, as well as a member of the city championship winning team. He was ranked as the #24 offensive lineman and #209 player overall in the nation by Prep Football Report.

College career

Butler then attended Purdue University, where he majored in Law and Society. As a true freshman in 2000, he received medical redshirt after suffering from shoulder tendinitis. In 2001, he received the team's Newcomer Award for Offense for the spring season. He was named to The Sporting News Big Ten All-Freshman team. He started all 12 games at Right Tackle. As a sophomore in 2002, he started all 13 games at Right Tackle. He graded out at 80% or better in five games, 81% against Minnesota and on the road against Iowa. He had a season-high grade of 83% against Indiana. He also helped Purdue lead Big Ten in total offense with 452.2 yards per game. In 2003 he started every game at Right Tackle and graded at least 80% or better for blocking consistency in every game. He recorded 78 knockdowns, with nine of those blocks resulting in touchdowns. He helped the offense average 372.9 yards per game. He ended his career with 10 knockdowns against Georgia in the Capital One Citrus Bowl as he did not allow defensive end Robert Geathers to record any tackles.

Professional career

Pre-draft

Butler was invited, and attended the 2004 NFL Scouting Combine.[2]

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 7+3⁄8 in
(2.02 m)		 320 lb
(145 kg)		 33+3⁄4 in
(0.86 m)		 9+7⁄8 in
(0.25 m)		5.11 s1.77 s2.96 s4.92 s7.96 s30+1⁄2 in
(0.77 m)		8 ft 9 in
(2.67 m)		19 reps
Arm and hand spans and bench press from Pro Day, all other values from NFL Combine.[2]

Detroit Lions

Butler was selected in the sixth round (172nd overall) of the 2004 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions.[3]

Butler played two seasons for the Lions, playing in just 16 regular season games during those two seasons. As a rookie in 2004 he was inactive for all but one game of the season. He was active for the Lions' season finale game against the Tennessee Titans, however he did not play in the game. The following year, he earned the starting role at Right Tackle, and made his NFL debut against the Green Bay Packers, he then started every game of the regular season, recording a recovered fumble to help continue a third quarter scoring drive against the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, his career in Detroit ended when he was waived by the Lions at the end of training camp the next season.

Cleveland Browns

Butler was claimed off of waivers by the Cleveland Browns on September 3, 2006. He began the season as the backup to starter Ryan Tucker. Butler appeared in seven games, including five starts at Right Tackle. He made his Browns debut, a start in place of an ill Tucker, against the New York Jets on October 29. He started his second game the next week against the San Diego Chargers. He then replaced Tucker (illness) as the starting Right Tackle between November 26 through December 17, he was however played on Injured Reserve on December 20 with an injured foot. However, on October 6, 2007, he was waived by the Browns, after Tucker returned from a league suspension.[4]

First stint with Yard Dawgz

In 2008, Butler joined af2, and on May 16, he was assigned to the Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz.[5] As a rookie in af2, he played in just seven games, with one start. For the season, he recorded one reception for four yards, against the Iowa Barnstormers.[6] His lone start of the season came against the Boise Burn.[6] On August 2, he was placed on the Other league exempt list by the Yard Dawgz,[7] after he was invited to training camp with the Arizona Cardinals.[8]

Arizona Cardinals

On July 24, 2008, Butler signed with the Arizona Cardinals.[9] However, on August 30, he, along with 21 others were released by the Cardinals final cuts of training camp.[10]

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

On March 19, 2010, it was announced that Butler had signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. After two seasons with the Blue Bombers, he announced his retirement on March 12, 2012.[11]

Personal life

Butler and his wife have one daughter. They reside in Winnipeg.

References
  1. "BLUE BOMBERS SIGN OL BUTLER, RELEASE DE PERRY".
  2. "*Kelly Butler, DS #3 OT, Purdue". DraftScout.com. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  3. "2004 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  4. Walcoff, Jeff (2007-10-06). "Tucker activated; Butler waived". ClevelandBrowns.com. Cleveland Browns. Archived from the original on 2007-06-27. Retrieved 2009-01-10.
  5. "Transactions Bulletin #162". af2.com. af2. 2008-05-16. Retrieved 2009-01-10.
  6. "AF2 - 2008 Season Oklahoma Yard Dawgz". TheStatGuy.com. Retrieved 2009-01-10.
  7. "Transactions Bulletin #219". af2. af2. 2008-08-02. Retrieved 2009-01-10.
  8. "Yard Dawgz to host final open tryout on Jan. 3; Kicker only tryout on Jan. 4". af2.com. af2. 2008-12-03. Retrieved 2009-01-10.
  9. Urban, Darren (2008-07-31). "Cards sign OT Butler, cut Coleman". AZCardinals.com. Arizona Cardinals. Retrieved 2009-01-10.
  10. Urban, Darren (2008-08-30). "Cardinals Make Their Cuts". AZCardinals.com. Arizona Cardinals. Archived from the original on September 12, 2008. Retrieved 2009-01-10.
  11. "Bombers' Kelly Butler announces retirement". Archived from the original on 2012-09-22. Retrieved 2017-09-02.
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