Ellis Hobbs facts for kids

Ellis Hue Hobbs III (born May 16, 1983) is a former football player. He played as a cornerback for six seasons. His career was in the National Football League (NFL).

Hobbs played college football for the Iowa State Cyclones. The New England Patriots chose him in the 2005 NFL draft. He played for the Patriots from 2005 to 2008. In April 2009, he was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles. He played for the Eagles from 2009 to 2010. A neck injury caused his career to end early.

Ellis Hobbs once held an NFL record. He had the longest kickoff return in NFL history. This was a 108-yard return. He achieved this on September 9, 2007. The game was against the New York Jets. Later, in 2013, another player broke this record.

Early Life and High School Football

Ellis Hobbs went to DeSoto High School. This school is in DeSoto, Texas. He was a great athlete in both football and track.

In track, he ran in relay races. He also competed in the long jump. For football, he was a star running back. He ran for 1,701 yards. He scored 29 touchdowns by running. He also caught 18 passes for 265 yards. He scored three more touchdowns from catching passes.

College Career at Iowa State

Hobbs played college football at Iowa State University. He was a starter at right cornerback for three years. He made 209 tackles. He also had two sacks. He recovered three fumbles and forced two others. He also broke up 29 passes.

He was also a good kick returner. He gained 490 yards from 24 kick returns. In his senior year, he earned All-Big 12 Conference first-team honors. Hobbs also won the Academic Athlete of the Year Award. He was a finalist for Christian Athlete of the Year at Iowa State.

In 2009, four years after leaving college, he finished his degree. He earned a bachelor's degree in art and design.

Professional Football Career

Playing for the New England Patriots

Ellis Hobbs joined the New England Patriots in 2005. He made important plays in his first year. Injuries to other players meant Hobbs started at cornerback. He started the last eight games of the season.

He caught three interceptions. He also returned 15 kickoffs for 371 yards. One return was 35 yards. This helped the Patriots win a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

2006 Season Highlights

In 2006, Hobbs started as a cornerback. He had a broken wrist early in the season. This made playing harder for him. He missed a few games. He also lost his starting job later in the year.

Despite this, he still had two interceptions. One was a 70-yard return against the Minnesota Vikings. He also filled in as a kick returner. He returned a kick for 51 yards against the Miami Dolphins. He also had a 93-yard return for a touchdown against the Houston Texans. This was his first career kickoff return touchdown. He made 47 tackles and broke up 4 passes. He also had 14 tackles in the playoffs.

Hobbs played well in the 2006 playoffs. He broke up several passes that could have been touchdowns. He had two such plays against the San Diego Chargers. He also broke up a pass in the AFC Championship Game. This play against the Indianapolis Colts was called pass interference. This call was debated by many. Hobbs also returned a kickoff for 80 yards in that game.

Record-Breaking 2007 Season

On September 9, 2007, Hobbs set a new NFL record. He returned a kickoff 108 yards for a touchdown. This was against the New York Jets. At the time, it was the longest play in NFL history.

In Week 3, he got his first NFL sack. He tackled J. P. Losman of the Bills. He also forced a fumble. In Week 10, he recovered a fumble. He returned it for his second touchdown of the season.

In Week 17, he intercepted a pass from Eli Manning. This helped the Patriots score a touchdown. It completed their perfect 16–0 season. He also intercepted a pass in the AFC Championship Game. This was against Philip Rivers of the San Diego Chargers.

In Super Bowl XLII, Hobbs intercepted Manning again. However, later in the game, Plaxico Burress scored a game-winning touchdown. This happened with only 35 seconds left. Hobbs played the Super Bowl with a torn shoulder injury. He had surgery on his shoulder after the game.

2008 Season and Final Patriots Year

In 2008, Hobbs intercepted three passes. He set a Patriots record for kick return yards in one game. He had 237 yards in a game against Miami. He also returned his third career touchdown. This was against the Oakland Raiders. He was named Special Teams Player of the Week for this. He finished the season second in the NFL for kick return average.

Time with the Philadelphia Eagles

In 2009, the Patriots traded Hobbs to the Philadelphia Eagles. He became the Eagles' main kick returner. On November 11, he was placed on injured reserve. This was due to a neck injury.

The Eagles re-signed Hobbs for one year in 2010. He was expected to start as a cornerback. This was alongside his former Patriots teammate Asante Samuel.

On November 21, 2010, Hobbs was injured again. He took a hit to the head while returning a kick. He suffered a disc injury. He was placed on injured reserve again. He announced his retirement from football on July 28, 2011.

Career Statistics

Here are some of Ellis Hobbs's statistics from his NFL career.

Regular season

Kick Return Statistics (Regular Season)