Elandon Roberts
Born: April 22, 1994 Port Arthur, Texas
Elandon Roberts (born April 22, 1994) is a linebacker in the National Football League who is known primarily for his time spent playing for the New England Patriots. He attended Memorial High School in Port Arthur, where he was a member of both the football team and the track and field team. He attended college at Morgan State as a freshman and then transferred to the University of Houston. The 107 tackle total he amassed at Morgan State marked the second-best single-season effort in program history, and Roberts also had nine tackles for a loss, two sacks, one interception, and two pass breakups as well.
As a senior in 2015, Roberts was a team captain at the University of Houston and had 142 total tackles, which was good enough to lead the American Conference and place him fourth in the nation. However, his 88 solo tackles led all of the Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly NCAA Division 1-A)
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Roberts was drafted by the Patriots in the sixth round, 214th overall. He made his first NFL start on October 16, 2016, against the Bengals and tied for second-highest tackles on the team with seven in that win.
In his second year in the NFL, Elandon made 14 starts for the Patriots. Roberts was part of the 2017 Patriots team that won Super Bowl LI and recorded two tackles as the Patriots defeated the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in overtime. The Patriots trailed 28–3 in the third quarter but rallied back to win in the first overtime game and the largest comeback in the Super Bowl history.
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In his third season, Roberts played in all 16 regular-season games and started 11 of them. He deflected a career-high four passes and recorded one sack. Roberts also made 31 solo tackles, including six tackles for losses, and assisted on another 34 tackles. Again, the Patriots made it to the Super Bowl, defeating the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 on February 3, 2019. Roberts played in all three postseason games, recording six solo tackles in the Super Bowl, including one tackle for a loss.
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In 2019, Roberts was voted a team defensive captain. He was a member of the team's high-performing linebacker corps, dubbed "The Boogeymen" by teammate Dont'a Hightower. Starting in Week 7, he began to play on offense as well as defense, where he was primarily used as a fullback after injuries to teammates. Roberts finished the season with 29 tackles, a sack, a pass defense, and a tackle for loss. Roberts scored his first career touchdown against the Miami Dolphins on December 29, 2019, when he caught a 38-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady during the 27–24 loss.
On March 24, 2020, the Miami Dolphins signed Roberts to a one-year, $2 million contract that includes a $1 million signing bonus. He was named a starting inside linebacker and played in 13 games with 11 starts, recording 61 tackles, 1.5 sacks, one forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.
Roberts re-signed with the Dolphins on March 24, 2021.
After performing at Houston's Pro Day on March 24, 2016, Roberts said, "the team that pulls the trigger on me is getting the best linebacker in the draft" and predicted that he was headed for the Super Bowl and the Hall of Fame. So far, his instincts look pretty good - as he now has two Super Bowls and induction into the Museum of the Gulf Coast's Hall of Fame (which he visited as a third-grader) under his belt.​ Memorial High School also retired his football jersey.