Introduction
Lance Kendricks (born January 30, 1988) is an American football tight end for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Wisconsin, and was recognized as a consensus All-American. The Rams selected him in the second round of the 2011 NFL Draft.
Early years
Kendricks was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He attended Rufus King International Baccalaureate High School in Milwaukee, where he played for the Rufus King Generals football and basketball teams. In football, he was a two-time all-city selection, the Generals' most valuable player as a junior and senior, and the team captain as a senior. He caught 42 passes for 640 yards as a senior, and totaled 102 receptions for 1,905 yards during his high school career.
Also an standout athlete, he was a member of the Generals track & field team, where he was one of the state's top performers in the jumping events. He was a four-time AAU triple jump champion. At the WIAA Division 1 State Championships, he finished 3rd in the triple jump as a sophomore and second as a junior. He was also a member of the 4 × 100m (43.92 seconds) and 4 × 200m (3:30.08 minutes).
He also competed for the Badgers track team in 2007. At the Big Ten Indoor Championships, he placed 12th in the triple jump with a leap of 14.61 meters. He also participated in the long jump event while at Wisconsin, recording a personal-best leap of 6.63 meters at the Big Ten Conference, where he took 17th. He got a PR of 14.75 meters in the triple jump.
College career
Kendricks attended the University of Wisconsin, where he played for the Wisconsin Badgers football team from 2007 to 2010. As a senior in 2010, he was a finalist for the John Mackey Award, received first-team All-Big Ten honors, and was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American. Prior to the 2011 NFL Draft, Kendricks was considered one of the top tight end prospects in the country.
College stats
| Year | Team | Receptions | Yards | Average | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Wisconsin | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
| 2008 | Wisconsin | 6 | 141 | 23.5 | 0 |
| 2009 | Wisconsin | 29 | 356 | 12.3 | 3 |
| 2010 | Wisconsin | 43 | 663 | 15.4 | 5 |
| College Totals | 78 | 1,160 | 14.9 | 8 | |
Professional career
| Ht | Wt | Arm length | Hand size | 40-yd dash | 10-yd split | 20-yd split | 20-ss | 3-cone | Vert | Broad | BP | Wonderlic | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 2⅞ in | 243 lb | 32 in | 9⅝ in | 4.57 s | 1.56 s | 2.64 s | 4.15 s | 6.94 s | 38½ in | 10 ft 2 in | 25 reps | x | |||||||
| All values from NFL Combine except 10, 20 40-yard dash and VJ which were from Pro Day | |||||||||||||||||||
Kendricks was selected 47th overall in the 2011 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Rams. On July 28, 2011, Kendricks signed a four-year $4.23 million contract with the Rams that included a $1.57 million signing bonus.
In 2011, Kendricks played in 15 games and had 352 receiving yards. In 2012, he played in 16 games and had 519 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns. In 2013 Kendricks numbers dropped due to the signing of Jared Cook. He finished the season with 32 receptions for 258 yards and 4 touchdowns.
On May 11, 2015, Kendricks re-signed with the Rams on a four-year contract worth roughly $18.5 million.