Eddie Royal

Royal was drafted in the second round (42nd overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos.[4]

Royal started and played in his first NFL regular season game on September 8, 2008 in a 41-14 road win over the Oakland Raiders. He caught nine balls for 146 yards and one touchdown in his debut. Royal's 146 receiving yards were the most by any wide receiver in the first week of the 2008 NFL regular season.[5] His nine receptions were the most by a rookie making his debut for the Broncos.[1] Royal's first career touchdown catch came in the first quarter of the game on a 26-yard pass from former Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler. Royal's opening week performance yielded voters on NFL.com to select him as the Diet Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week out of five finalists.[6]

The versatile Eddie Royal played four seasons for the Broncos. Royal is pictured at a game in December 2009.

In Royal's second game of the season, he caught five passes for 37 yards and one touchdown, as part of a 39-38 Broncos home win over the San Diego Chargers.[7] His touchdown catch came with 24 seconds left in the game on a 4th and 4 from San Diego's four-yard-line. The catch made the score 38-37 Chargers; however, the Broncos subsequently went for a two-point conversion, in which Royal caught a pass from Cutler, thus, giving the Broncos a one-point victory. In Week 10, a game in which the Broncos defeated the Cleveland Browns on the road in comeback fashion, 34-30, Royal caught six passes for 164 yards, including a 93-yard touchdown pass.[8] The performance earned him the honor of Diet Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week for the second time in his career.[9]

On November 30, 2008, in a 34-17 Broncos road victory over the New York Jets, Royal set a franchise record for most touchdowns (5) and receiving yards (757) for a rookie in one season after catching five passes for 84 yards and a touchdown.[10]

Royal's 91 receptions are second most in NFL history for a rookie, behind only Anquan Boldin who had 101 receptions in 2003. His 980 yards and five touchdowns are both Broncos rookie records. He was seventh in the league among wide receivers in receptions, and sixth in the NFL in total yards.

Early in the 2009 season, Royal became the 4th fastest player in NFL history to reach 100 career receptions.

On October 19, 2009, Royal became the first player in Broncos history, and only the 11th player to date in National Football League history, to return a kickoff (93 yards) and a punt (71 yards) for touchdowns in the same game, leading undefeated Denver to a 34-23 win over the San Diego Chargers.[11]

On March 15, 2012, Royal signed a three-year contract with the San Diego Chargers worth $13.5 million, $6 million of which is guaranteed.[12] He contributed as a slot receiver while handling the team’s punt return responsibilities. But a series of setbacks hampered the beginning of his career in San Diego. Royal suffered a groin injury during the first day of training camp and shortly thereafter, his mom fell ill and he found himself making several trips home to Virginia to be by her side. Despite the slow start in San Diego, Royal finished the year strong and his best games were during the end of the season.[13]

In 2013, Royal reunited with new Chargers head coach Mike McCoy, his old offensive coordinator in Denver. Through the first eight games, Royal was among the league leaders in touchdowns with seven. He finished the 2013 season with 631 yards and a career-high in touchdowns with 8.[14]

In 2014, Royal played one of the biggest roles in bringing former Virginia Tech teammate and Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Brandon Flowers to the Chargers. Royal, along with his teammates, sold Flowers on the city and fans. They emphasized how they were trying to build something great and how he would be another piece to the puzzle.[15]

On March 11, 2015, Royal signed a three-year, $15 million deal with $10 million guaranteed with the Chicago Bears.[16] In 2015, Royal had just 37 catches for 238 yards and one touchdown in his first season in Chicago after being limited to nine games due to injuries.[17]

On September 11, 2016, Royal caught his first touchdown of the season in the season-opening loss to the Houston Texans.[18] On October 2, Royal caught 7 passes for 111 yards and a touchdown against the Detroit Lions, his first 100+ yard game since 2014.[19] As well as catching a touchdown pass, Royal also caught a single pass for a 64-yard gain.[20][21] He suffered a foot injury in mid-October that limited him throughout the season before being placed on injured reserve on December 19.[22] In 2016, he appeared in nine games and caught 33 passes for 369 yards with two touchdowns.[23] He had foot surgery in late December 2016.[23]

On May 11, 2017, Royal was released by the Bears.[24]

Receiving

[25]

Returning

[25]

Rushing

[25]

As of 2017's NFL off-season, Eddie Royal held at least 7 Broncos franchise records, including:

• Receptions: rookie season (91 in 2008), rookie game (11 on 2008-12-28 @SDG )
• Receiving Yds: rookie season (980 in 2008)
• Rec Yds/Game: rookie season (65.3 in 2008)
• Kick Return Touchdowns: game (1 on 2009-10-19 @SDG; with 9 others)
• Total Return Yards: game (235 on 2009-10-19 @SDG)
• 100+ yard receiving games: rookie season (3)