The Philadelphia Eagles may have recognized that when they decided to select him in the 17th round of the 1966 NFL Draft.
“Back then you had the AFL and the NFL and the (AFL’s) Miami Dolphins wanted me to come down there and try out as a free agent,” Kelley said. “But at least Philadelphia drafted me and gave me an opportunity, so I decided to go with them.
“I was pretty happy to even get drafted because I didn’t know if I would be or not. Back then, they were looking for the 6-3, 250-pound middle linebackers: the Dick Butkuses, the Tommy Nobises.