Robert Chevis Nelson Jr. (born February 16, 1990) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

who is a free agent. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Louisiana–Monroe and

Arizona State Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

. He was signed by the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 2014.

College career

Nelson attended the

University of Louisiana at Monroe The University of Louisiana Monroe (ULM) is a public university in Monroe, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System. History ULM opened in 1931 as Ouachita Parish Junior College. Three years later it became the Northeast Cen ...

for two years before transferring to

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

. As a senior in 2013, he was a first team All-

Pac-12 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...

selection.

Professional career

Cleveland Browns

Nelson was signed by the

after going

undrafted In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in the

2014 NFL Draft The 2014 NFL draft was the 79th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players to the league. The draft, officially the "Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall in New Y ...

. He was released by the Browns on September 5, 2015.

Arizona Cardinals

Nelson was signed to the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

' practice squad on September 7, 2015. On November 11, 2015, he was elevated to the active roster. On December 1, 2015, he was waived.

Houston Texans

Nelson was signed to the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

's practice squad on December 30, 2015. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Texans on January 11, 2016. On September 3, 2016, he was released by the Texans and was signed to the practice squad the next day. On October 13, 2016, he was promoted to the active roster. On September 2, 2017, Nelson was waived by the Texans.

New England Patriots

On September 20, 2017, Nelson was signed to the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

' practice squad. He was released on September 25, 2017.

New York Jets

On September 26, 2017, Nelson was signed to the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

' practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on October 24, 2017. He was waived by the Jets on December 8, 2017.

Baltimore Ravens

On December 26, 2017, Nelson was signed to the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...

' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Ravens on January 11, 2018. He was waived on June 11, 2018.

New Orleans Saints

On August 11, 2018, Nelson signed with the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

. He was waived on September 1, 2018.

Arizona Hotshots

In late 2018, Nelson joined the

Arizona Hotshots The Arizona Hotshots were a professional American football franchise based in Tempe, Arizona, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which played one season from February 2019 to April 2019. They played their h ...

of the

Alliance of American Football The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan are ...

. In the season opener against the

Salt Lake Stallions The Salt Lake Stallions were a professional American football franchise based in Salt Lake City, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which began play in February 2019. The Stallions were the northernmost team in ...

, he intercepted quarterback

Josh Woodrum Josh Woodrum (born November 7, 1992) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football at Liberty University and signed with the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 2016. Early years Woodrum attended Cave Spring Hi ...

in the first half. The league ceased operations in April 2019.

Houston Roughnecks

Nelson was drafted in the 2nd round during phase four in the 2020 XFL Draft by the

Houston Roughnecks The Houston Roughnecks are a professional American football team based in Houston, Texas. The team is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL founded by Vince McMahon's Alpha Entertainment and plays its home games at TDECU Stadium. History ...

St. Louis BattleHawks

Nelson was traded to the

St. Louis BattleHawks The St. Louis BattleHawks are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. The team was founded by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL owned by Dwayne Johnson’s Alpha A ...

in exchange for offensive lineman Juwann Bushell-Beatty and cornerback

Charles James Charles James may refer to: * Charles James (British Army officer) (1757/8–1821), English army officer and writer * Charles James (attorney) (born 1954), former U.S. assistant attorney general * Charles James (American football) (born 1990), Amer ...

on January 21, 2020. He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.

Montreal Alouettes

Nelson signed with the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the Canadian F ...

of the CFL on June 30, 2021. He was released on July 26, 2021.

Arlington Renegades

Nelson was selected by the

Arlington Renegades The Arlington Renegades are a professional American football team based in Arlington, Texas. The team was founded as the Dallas Renegades by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL (2020), XFL owne ...

in the 2023 XFL Draft.

NFL statistics

References

External links

Cleveland Browns bio

Arizona State Sun Devils bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Robert 1990 births Living people Players of American football from Lakeland, Florida North Gwinnett High School alumni American football safeties American football cornerbacks Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks football players Arizona State Sun Devils football players Cleveland Browns players Arizona Cardinals players Houston Texans players New England Patriots players New York Jets players Baltimore Ravens players New Orleans Saints players Arizona Hotshots players Houston Roughnecks players St. Louis BattleHawks players Montreal Alouettes players