Ryan Kelly

BIOGRAPHY

Ryan Patrick Kelly is an American football center in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at University of Alabama.

Kelly attended Lakota West High School in West Chester, Ohio, where he was teammates with Jordan Hicks. As a junior in 2009, he was a first-team all-conference and all-city selection on the offensive line. During his senior season, he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in the last game of his season against rival Lakota East, yet he still was named third-team Division I All-Ohio. Kelly verbally committed to Alabama in July 2010.

After redshirting his initial year in Tuscaloosa, Kelly came off the bench to play in 10 games of the 2012 season at center, backing up All-American senior Barrett Jones. Kelly was named to the SEC All-Freshman team, alongside Amari Cooper and T. J. Yeldon. In his sophomore year, Kelly took over starting duties from Jones, making the calls on an offensive line that ranked 23rd nationally and fourth in the SEC for the fewest sacks allowed per game (1.31).

As a junior, Kelly was named to the Rimington Trophy watch list and started 12 games at center. A highly reliable anchor on the offensive line, he missed just seven assignments in 806 snaps on the year for a 99.1 percent success rate and did not allow a quarterback sack. After wins at Tennessee and against Western Carolina he was named Alabama's Offensive Player of the Week. In his senior season, Kelly missed only eight assignments in 1,012 snaps for a success rate of 99.2 percent on the season and committed just one penalty in 1,012 snaps with no holding calls. He was a consensus first-team All-America selection, earning first-team honors from Walter Camp, USA Today, Sporting News, the FWAA, and the AFCA, and won the Rimington Trophy in 2015.

The Indianapolis Colts selected Kelly in the first round (18th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft. The Colts drafted him with the expectation of him becoming “the first solid center for the franchise since Jeff Saturday.” He was  Alabama's first interior offensive lineman selected in the first round since Chance Warmack in 2013. On September 4, 2020, the Colts signed Kelly to a four-year, $50 million extension, making him the highest-paid center in the NFL.