Chris Kelsay
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Career Summary
Chris Kelsay was a Buffalo Bills defensive end who played his entire 10-year NFL career with the club.
Chris Kelsay played 10 NFL seasons for Buffalo after a decorated Nebraska career. He appeared in 147 games, ranking 16th in Bills history at the time of his retirement.
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Early Life
Kelsay grew up in Auburn, Nebraska.
Kelsay came from Auburn, Nebraska, where he became a standout multi-sport athlete before joining the Cornhuskers.
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High School
At Auburn High School, Kelsay was an all-state football, basketball and track athlete.
Kelsay earned first-team All-Nebraska and Super-State recognition as a defensive lineman at Auburn. His senior football season included 142 tackles, 14 sacks, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
He also earned all-state basketball recognition and placed in the Class B shot put.
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College Career
Kelsay was a Nebraska Blackshirt leader who combined All-Big 12 and All-America honors with major academic recognition.
At Nebraska, Kelsay developed into a Blackshirt defense leader and 2002 team captain. In 2001, he earned second-team All-America honors from Football News, first-team All-Big 12 recognition from the Kansas City Star, and led the Huskers with 17 tackles for loss.
Kelsay received a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete postgraduate scholarship, earned first-team Academic All-Big 12 honors in all four seasons and graduated with a finance degree and better than a 3.5 GPA.
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Path to the NFL
Buffalo chose Kelsay in the second round of the 2003 NFL Draft.
The Bills selected Kelsay in the second round of the 2003 NFL Draft. He began a 10-year career entirely with Buffalo.
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NFL Career
Kelsay played 147 games for Buffalo, posting 32.5 sacks, eight forced fumbles and two safeties.
Kelsay appeared in 147 games and made 120 starts for the Bills from 2003 through 2012. He finished ninth on the franchise sack list with 32.5 and tied for the team lead with two career safeties.
His 2007 Monday Night Football highlight came when he tipped a Tony Romo pass to himself and returned it for an interception touchdown.
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Career Accomplishments
Kelsay became one of Buffalo's durable defensive leaders and ranks among the club's leaders in games, sacks and forced fumbles.
At retirement, Kelsay ranked 16th in Bills history in games played, ninth in sacks and eighth in forced fumbles. His 10-year tenure made him a long-serving defensive and locker-room leader.
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Playing Style
Kelsay was a durable defensive end whose production came through pressure, disruption and consistent availability.
Kelsay produced 32.5 sacks and eight forced fumbles while sustaining an unusually durable run; he missed only three games in his first eight NFL seasons. His 2011 game at Denver included his first multi-sack game, with 3.0 sacks.
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Legacy
Kelsay's legacy connects his academic success at Nebraska with a decade of service to the Bills.
Kelsay left Nebraska with major academic and athletic honors, then fulfilled his stated goal of retiring with the Bills team that drafted him. Buffalo described him as a consummate professional and excellent team leader.
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