Roosevelt Nix (fullback)
| No. 45 Pittsburgh Steelers | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Fullback | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Date of birth: | March 30, 1992 | ||||||||
| Place of birth: | Reynoldsburg, Ohio | ||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 248 lb (112 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Reynoldsburg (OH) | ||||||||
| College: | Kent State | ||||||||
| Undrafted: | 2014 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
| Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||
Roosevelt Delbert Nix-Jones (born March 30, 1992) is an American football fullback for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the Atlanta Falcons after going undrafted in the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Kent State University. Nix has also been a member of the Cleveland Gladiators of the Arena Football League. His father, Roosevelt Nix, also played in the NFL.[1]
High school career
Nix attended Reynoldsburg High School. He was named OCC player of the year while earning second team all-state, first team All-district, All-metro and OCC honors his senior year. He played for Ohio in the 2010 Big 33 Classic and was also selected to play in the Ohio North-South All-Star game. Nix recorded 84 tackles and eight sacks as a junior, garnering second team All-state, All-conference, first-team All-district, Super 25 and first team OCC recognition. He also lettered in wrestling.[2]
College career
Freshman season (2010)
After graduating from high school, Nix began attending Kent State University. He joined the Golden Flashes football team as a defensive lineman and played his freshman season under head coach Doug Martin. In his first two career games against Murray State and Boston College, he would force a fumble and record a sack. In Week 5, in a game against Miami University, he ended the game with three tackles-for-loss, a sack, and a forced fumble making it four forced fumbles in his first five career games. The next game he recorded 3.5 sacks and force another fumble against Akron. He continued in Week 8 with five tackles, two sacks, 3.5 tackles-for-loss, and blocked an extra point in a win over Bowling Green. In a Week 10 game against Temple, he recorded a career-high five tackles in the 28-10 loss. He finished his first season at Kent State with 43 tackles (19 solo), 10 sacks, four forced fumbled, and led the MAC conference with 20 tackles for a loss. He also became Kent State's first freshman to ever win the MAC Defensive Player of the Year Award and was voted first-team All-MAC.[3]
Sophomore season (2011)
With a 5–7 finish in Nix's freshman year, Kent State chose to hire Darrell Hazell to replace Martin as Kent State's head coach for 2011. In the season opener, Nix recorded six tackles, two tackles-for-loss, and a sack against #2 Alabama. On September 29, he forced a fumble that led to the game-winning touchdown in a victory against FCS South Alabama. While playing Northern Illinois, he finished the game with four tackles, two tackles-for-loss, and a forced fumble. In a week 11 contest against Akron, he had a career-high six tackles, 1.5 tackles-for-loss, and two pass break ups in a performance that won him MAC East Defensive Player of the Week. He ended his first season under Hazell, being voted to first-team All-MAC for the second consecutive year and finishing with 39 tackles (25 solo), 4.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, and led Kent State with 17 tackles for a loss.[3]
Junior season (2012)
Nix was voted as a team captain by his coaches and teammates and opened his junior season with eight tackles, four tackles-for-loss, and a sack against #7 FCS Towson. In Week 4, he recorded five solo tackles, two tackles-for-loss, a sack, and a forced fumble in a 45–43 victory over Ball State. On October 13, in a victory over Army, he recorded five tackles, two tackles-for-loss, and a sack. On November 30, he finished with a total of five tackles and a sack in an overtime loss to Northern Illinois. The Golden Flashes finished their season with a loss to Arkansas State in the 2013 GoDaddy.com Bowl and with a record of 11–3. Nix ended his junior season with 59 tackles (36 solo), 15 tackles for loss, six sacks, and three forced fumbles while also being voted first-team All-MAC by Phil Steele.[3]
Senior season (2013)
Following their success the previous year, head coach Hazell resigned and took a job with Purdue. Paul Haynes was then named head coach, being Nix's third during his time at Kent State. In a Week 2 contest, he finished with four tackles-for-loss in a 41-22 loss to Bowling Green. In Week 5, he recorded a career-high eight tackles against Western Michigan. For his last collegiate game, he recorded six tackles, a tackle-for-loss, and a forced fumble in a victory over Ohio. For his last season at Kent State, he finished with a total of 41 tackles (22 solo), 13 tackles-for-loss, 3.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles. He was also voted defensive captain by his teammates and first-team All-MAC by Sports Illustrated.[3]
Nix ended his collegiate career leading Kent State with 65 tackles for a loss, and second in school history with 25 sacks. He also accumulated 182 tackles (102 solo) and 12 forced fumbles. He also was the first player in school history to receive first-team all conference honors all four seasons of his career.[2] His 65 tackles-for-loss ranks him fourth of all-time in NCAA History.
Professional career
Pre-draft
Even though he had a productive career at Kent State, he was projected to go undrafted due to his small stature for his position and wasn't invited to work out at the NFL Combine. He decided to switch to linebacker before Kent State's Pro Day and shed 19 lbs.[4] Representatives from eight NFL teams showed up to Kent State's Pro Day to watch 11 prospects including Dri Archer.[5]
| Ht | Wt | 40-yd dash | 10-yd split | 20-yd split | 20-ss | 3-cone | Vert | Broad | BP | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 11¼ in | 248 lb | 4.79 s | 1.63 s | 2.79 s | 4.39 s | 6.90 s | 28 in | 9 ft 2 in | 22 reps | ||||||||||
| All values from Kent State Pro day.[6] | |||||||||||||||||||
Atlanta Falcons
On May 10, 2014, the Atlanta Falcons signed Nix to a three-year, $1.54 million contract after he went undrafted in the 2014 NFL Draft.[7][8] He appeared on Hard Knocks with the Falcons.[9] To have a better oppurtunity to make the 53-man roster, Nix switched from linebacker to fullback but was eventually released by the Falcons on August 3, 2014.[4][8]
Cleveland Gladiators
Nix was assigned to the Cleveland Gladiators of the Arena Football League (AFL) on October 9, 2014. He was placed on Other League Exempt on January 5, 2015.[10]
Pittsburgh Steelers
On January 9, 2015, the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Nix to a one-year, $435,000 reserve/futures contract, reuniting him with former Kent State teammate Dri Archer.[7][8] He originally was signed as an inside linebacker but with too much depth at the position he was again switched to fullback.[4] With the Steelers history of not typically using fullbacks under offensive coordinator Todd Haley and former coordinator Bruce Arians, Nix's best chance of keeping a position was a roster was to excel on special teams. During the pre-season, he made notable plays on special teams, including a blocked kick.[4]
On September 5, 2015, Nix made the regular season roster and was slated to be the backup to veteran Will Johnson. As of Week 11 of the 2015 NFL season, he has played in all 10 of the Steelers' games, starting three. His first forced fumble was during Week 9 of the 2015 NFL season, on special teams, when the Steelers hosted the Oakland Raiders. For the season, he recorded two receptions for 11 yards, and seven special teams tackles.[11] Nix was unfortunately unable to finish the season due to a foot injury.[4]
On January 19, 2016, he was signed to a one-year, $525,000 contract extension.[7][12]
During the 2015-2016 offseason, former starting fullback Will Johnson left via free agency to join the New York Giants. The Steeler's named Nix the de facto starter at fullback going into the 2016 regular season.[4]
Personal life
Nix-Jones was born on March 30, 1992 in Reynoldsburg, Ohio to Lisa and Roosevelt Nix. His stepfather's name is Johnny Jones.[1] He has two younger siblings, Keela and Jalen Jones. During her time in college, his mother Lisa was a standout softball player during her time at Bowling Green.
References
- 1 2 Blackledge, Steve (August 25, 2009). "High school football: Nix suffers no shortage of skills". dispatch.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2015. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
- 1 2 "Roosevelt Nix". kentstatesports.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2015. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 "Roosevelt Nix Kent State bio". Retrieved November 28, 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Zach Goncz. "Steeler's Roosevelt Nix Superstar-ish". stillcurtain.com. Retrieved November 27, 2016.
- ↑ Gil Brandt. "Roosevelt Nix of Kent State is an intriguing football prospect". blogs.NFL.com. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
- ↑ "Roosevelt Nix". nfldraftscout.com. Retrieved November 28, 2016.
- 1 2 3 "Sportrac.com: Roosevelt Nix contract". Retrieved November 28, 2016.
- 1 2 3 "Roosevelt Nix". kffl.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2015. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
- ↑ Svetz, Josh (February 22, 2015). "The Steelers Futures Report: Roosevelt Nix". steelersdepot.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2015. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
- ↑ "Team Transactions". arenafan.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2015. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
- ↑ "Pittsburgh Steelers: Roosevelt Nix". www.steelers.com. Retrieved 2015-11-20.
- ↑ "Steelers Sign OL Chris Hubbard & FB Roosevelt Nix To Extensions - NFL Trade Rumors". NFL Trade Rumors. NFL Trade Rumors. Retrieved 2016-01-20.