Former Bruins running back signs with New York Giants

Former UCLA running back Joshua Kelley has signed with the New York Giants, the team announced Thursday. The Giants signed Kelley along with defensive backs Raheem Layne and Jonathan Sutherland.

The signing came two days after Giants rookie running back Tyrone Tracy was carried off the field during practice. The Giants have room for reinforcements at that position after star running back Saquon Barkley left the field in the offseason and is now playing for the Philadelphia Eagles. The Giants’ best runner is currently Devin Singletary.

Up until this point, Kelley had played exclusively for the Los Angeles Chargers. Kelley was the Chargers’ fourth pick in the 2020 NFL Draft and was primarily a backup to Austin Ekeler during his career in Los Angeles.

As a rookie, Kelley appeared in 14 games and rushed for 354 yards on 111 carries and two touchdowns, averaging 3.2 yards per carry. In his second season, his performance dropped off, dropping to just 33 carries. He rebounded in 2022, rushing 69 times for 287 yards and two touchdowns, and eventually averaging over 4.0 yards per carry. In his final season in 2023, Kelley appeared in all 17 games, rushing for 107 carries, or 405 yards and two touchdowns.

Before his NFL career, Kelley began playing college football in the FCS at UC Davis, where he rushed for 1,139 yards and seven touchdowns in two seasons with the Aggies from 2015 to 2016. After the season, he transferred to UCLA and signed as a walk-on. Due to transfer rules at the time, Kelley was unable to play in his first season in Westwood.

After the 2017 season, Chip Kelly took over as the team’s head coach and gave Kelley a scholarship. Kelley had his breakout season under Kelly’s offense in 2018. He took over midseason and rushed for over 100 yards in six consecutive games. His best game of the season came against rival USC, where he rushed for 289 yards and two touchdowns in a win for the Bruins.

Kelley finished the 2018 season as the Bruins’ MVP with 1,246 yards and 12 touchdowns while averaging 5.5 yards per carry. He followed up with another 1,000-yard season, running for 1,060 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2019 before entering the NFL Draft the following spring.