Carson Steele
{{Short description|American football player (born 2002)}}
{{Use American English|date=November 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name = Carson Steele
| image =Buccaneers at Chiefs (54133864736) (cropped)-Carson Steele.jpg
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption = Steele with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2024
| number = 42
| current_team = Kansas City Chiefs
| position = Fullback
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|2002|10|21}}
| birth_place = Greenwood, Indiana, U.S.
| death_date =
| death_place =
| height_ft = 6
| height_in = 0
| weight_lb = 228
| high_school = Center Grove
(Greenwood, Indiana)
| college = Ball State (2021–2022)
UCLA (2023)
| undraftedyear = 2024
| pastteams =
- Kansas City Chiefs ({{NFL Year|2024}}–present)
| status = Active
| highlights =
| statseason = 2024
| statweek = 18
| statlabel1 = Rushing yards
| statvalue1 = 183
| statlabel2 = Rushing average
| statvalue2 = 3.3
| statlabel3 = Rushing touchdowns
| statvalue3 = 0
| statlabel4 = Receptions
| statvalue4 = 7
| statlabel5 = Receiving yards
| statvalue5 = 26
| statlabel6 = Receiving touchdowns
| statvalue6 = 0
| statlabel7 = Return yards
| statvalue7 = 138
}}
Carson Steele (born October 21, 2002) is an American professional football fullback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ball State Cardinals and the UCLA Bruins. He was signed by the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent after the 2024 NFL draft.
Early life
Steele was raised in Greenwood, Indiana.{{Cite news |last=Hansen |first=Ian |date=September 29, 2021 |title=Iron makes Steele: Carson Steele broke records in high school and is already contributing in a big way to Ball State |url=https://www.ballstatedailynews.com/article/2021/09/sports-ball-state-football-cardinals-carson-steele-center-grove-trojans-feature |access-date=2024-09-06 |work=Ball State Daily News}} He was born to Joseph Steele and Angela Berry-Steele. He grew up alongside his older sister, Kesslar Steele.{{Cite web |last=Neddenriep |first=Kyle |date=November 12, 2020 |title=Carson Steele's legacy as one of Center Grove's greats will last beyond the record books |url=https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/high-school/2020/11/12/ihsaa-football-carson-steele-legacy-center-grove-indiana-rushing-records/6270110002/ |access-date=2024-09-06 |website=The Indianapolis Star |language=en-US}}
He attended Center Grove High School in Greenwood,{{cite news|title=Horse Race: Steele poised to rewrite Center Grove record book|newspaper=The Daily Journal|author=Mike Beas|date=September 18, 2020|page=B1|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/112790808/horse-race-carson-steele/|via=Newspapers.com}} rushing for 1,659 yards and 31 touchdowns as a senior in 2020.{{cite web|title=Carson Steele|publisher=Ball State University|accessdate=November 9, 2022|url=https://ballstatesports.com/sports/football/roster/carson-steele/10341}} He tallied a total of 5,907 rushing yards during his high school career.{{cite news|title='Strangely Successful': BSU freshman Carson Steele shined in 1st game|newspaper=The Star Press|author=Robby General|date=September 10, 2021|pages=B1, B2|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/112790568/strangely-successful/|via=Newspapers.com}} He was selected as Mr. Football in Indiana after the 2020 season.{{Cite web |last=Neddenriep |first=Kyle |date=2021-02-03 |title=College football: Mr. Football Carson Steele signs with Ball State |url=https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/high-school/2021/02/03/college-football-mr-football-carson-steele-signs-ball-state/4375642001/ |access-date=2024-07-16 |website=IndyStar}}
College career
Steele signed a letter of intent to play college football at Ball State University in February 2021. As a freshman in 2021, he rushed for 891 yards and six touchdowns.{{cite web|title=Carson Steele|work=ESPN.com|accessdate=November 9, 2022|url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/player/_/id/4714365/carson-steele}} During his freshman year, he squatted 615 pounds and was able to bench press 405 lbs.{{cite news|title=From alligators to nicknames, who is BSU RBCarson Steele? (part 2)|newspaper=Muncie Star Press|author=Bobby General|date=September 9, 2022|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/112791308/steele-part-2/|via=Newspapers.com}} Barstool Sports' podcast "Unnecessary Roughness" called him "the most interesting man in CFB (college football)."
Prior to the 2022 season, Steele was selected by Bruce Feldman of The Athletic to his list of the top 100 "freaks" in college football.{{Cite news |last=Feldman |first=Bruce |date=2022-08-10 |title=College football Freaks List 2022: Bruce Feldman’s rankings, with Michigan’s Mazi Smith at No. 1 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/3488797/2022/08/10/college-football-freaks-list-2022/ |access-date=2025-01-15 |work=The Athletic}} On November 8, 2022, he rushed for a career-high 198 yards and three touchdowns against Toledo.{{cite news|title=3 takeaways from Ball State football at Toledo: Rockets dash Cardinals MAC Championship hopes|newspaper=Muncie Star Press|author=Robby General|date=November 9, 2022|url=https://www.thestarpress.com/story/sports/college/ball-state/2022/11/09/toledo-football-dashes-ball-states-mac-championship-hopes-3-takeaways/69617199007/}} He also rushed for 192 yards against Kent State.{{cite news|title=Carson Steele rushes for 192 yards, Ball State beats Kent State 27-20|publisher=Associated Press|date=November 1, 2022|url=https://apnews.com/article/college-football-sports-ball-state-cardinals-john-paddock-tanner-koziol-5f7fde3b11ec776890cad216a60c8e9c}} He was awarded MAC West Offensive Player of the Week twice during the 2022 season.{{cite web|url=https://getsomemaction.com/news/2022/10/10/mac-announces-week-6-football-players-of-the-week.aspx|title=MAC Announces Week 6 Football Players of the Week|date=October 10, 2022|accessdate=October 10, 2022|website=getsomemaction.com|publisher=Mid-American Conference}}{{cite web|url=https://getsomemaction.com/news/2022/11/7/mac-announces-week-10-football-players-of-the-week.aspx|title=MAC Announces Week 10 Football Players of the Week|date=November 7, 2022|accessdate=November 8, 2022|website=getsomemaction.com|publisher=Mid-American Conference}} Through games played on November 19, 2022, Steele ranked ninth nationally with 1,376 rushing yards on 263 attempts (5.2 yards per carry).{{cite web|title=College Football Player Rushing Stats 2022|work=ESPN.com|accessdate=November 16, 2022|url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/stats/player/_/view/offense/stat/rushing/table/rushing/sort/rushingYards/dir/desc}}
On January 4, 2023, Steele committed to transfer to play at the University of California, Los Angeles, for the Bruins.{{cite web|url=https://www.si.com/college/ucla/football/ball-state-transfer-running-back-carson-steele-commits-to-ucla-football|title=Ball State Transfer RB Carson Steele Commits to UCLA Football|website=Sports Illustrated|first=Sam|last=Connon|date=January 4, 2023}} He was again named to Bruce Feldman's "freak list" for a second straight time in 2023.{{Cite news |last=Feldman |first=Bruce |date=2023-08-15 |title=College football Freaks List 2023: Bruce Feldman’s rankings, with a true freshman at No. 1 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/4768413/2023/08/15/bruce-feldman-college-football-freaks-list/ |access-date=2025-01-15 |work=The Athletic}}
=College statistics=
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" | ||||||||||
| rowspan="2"| Season
! colspan="2"| Games ! colspan="4"| Rushing ! colspan="4"| Receiving | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Att | Yards | Avg | TD | Rec | Yards | Avg | TD | |
| colspan="15" style="{{CollegePrimaryStyle|Ball State Cardinals|color=white}}"| Ball State Cardinals | ||||||||||
| 2021
| 13 || 7 || 192 || 891 || 4.6 || 6 || 12 || 157 || 13.1 || 1 | ||||||||||
| 2022
| 12 || 12 || 289 || 1,556 || 5.4 || 14 || 29 || 166 || 5.7 || 1 | ||||||||||
| colspan="15" style="{{CollegePrimaryStyle|UCLA Bruins|color=white}}"| UCLA Bruins | ||||||||||
| 2023
| 12 || 9 || 167 || 847 || 5.1 || 6 || 17 || 163 || 9.6 || 2 | ||||||||||
| [https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/carson-steele-1.html Career] | 37 | 28 | 648 | 3,294 | 5.1 | 26 | 58 | 486 | 8.4 | 4 |
Professional career
{{NFL predraft
| height ft = 6
| height in = 0 5/8
| weight = 228
| dash = 4.77
| ten split = 1.60
| twenty split = 2.70
| shuttle = 4.36
| cone drill = 7.07
| vertical = 37.5
| broad ft = 9
| broad in = 8
| bench = 28
| arm span = 30 1/2
| hand span = 9 5/8
| note = All values from Pro Day{{Cite web |url=https://draftscout.com/dsprofile.php?PlayerId=1055941&DraftYear=2024 |title=2024 NFL Draft Scout Carson Steele College Football Profile |website=DraftScout.com |access-date=April 13, 2024}}
}}
=2024 season=
Steele was signed by the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent after the 2024 NFL draft.{{cite web|title=Chiefs Announce Roster Moves|url=https://www.chiefs.com/news/chiefs-announce-roster-moves-x9527|website=Chiefs.com|date=May 4, 2024}} Steele made the Chiefs' initial 53 man roster listed as a fullback instead of his collegiate position of running back.{{cite web | last=Wadleigh | first=Matt | title=Carson Steele makes Chiefs 53-man roster | website=UCLA Wire|publisher=USA Today | date=2024-08-27 | url=https://uclawire.usatoday.com/2024/08/27/carson-steele-makes-chiefs-53-man-roster/ | access-date=2024-09-06}}
Steele made his NFL debut in Week 1 of the 2024 NFL Season against the Baltimore Ravens. He had 2 carries for 3 yards along returning a kick for 28 yards in a 27–20 win for the Chiefs.{{Cite web |title=Baltimore Ravens at Kansas City Chiefs - September 5th, 2024 |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/202409050kan.htm |access-date=2024-09-06 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}
In Week 3 against the Atlanta Falcons, he had 17 rushing attempts and 72 rushing yards, along with recording 1 reception for 2 yards in the Chiefs' 22-17 win.
As a rookie, Steele played both fullback (his designated position) and running back on offense and occasionally returned kicks on special teams. He was used mainly as a run blocker and short yardage runner.
Steele played a total of 199 offensive snaps in his rookie season. He played 190 snaps in the backfield, 2 snaps as a tight end, 1 as a slot receiver, and 6 out wide. Steele finished his rookie season with 183 rushing yards on 56 attempts and 26 receiving yards on 7 receptions. He also returned 5 kicks for 138 yards. Steele was an alternate for the 2025 Pro Bowl and finished second behind Patrick Ricard of the Baltimore Ravens among AFC fullbacks in Pro Bowl voting.
NFL career statistics
=Regular season=
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
! rowspan="2" | Year ! rowspan="2" | Team ! colspan="2" | Games ! colspan="5" | Rushing ! colspan="5" | Receiving ! colspan="5" | Returning ! colspan="2" | Fumbles | |||||||||||||||||||
| GP | GS | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Rt | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | KC
| 17 || 3 || 56 || 183 || 3.3 || 9 || 0 || 7 || 26 || 3.7 || 9 || 0 || 5 || 138 || 27.6 || 31 || 0 || 3 || 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| colspan="2" | [https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/S/SteeCa00.htm Career] | 17 | 3 | 56 | 183 | 3.3 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 26 | 3.7 | 9 | 0 | 5 | 138 | 27.6 | 31 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{footballstats|yahoo=41464}}
- [https://www.chiefs.com/team/players-roster/carson-steele/ Kansas City Chiefs bio]
- [https://ballstatesports.com/sports/football/roster/carson-steele/10341 Ball State Cardinals bio]
- [https://uclabruins.com/sports/football/roster/carson-steele/12740 UCLA Bruins bio]
- [https://starbiographer.com/players/carson-steeles-parents-joseph-and-angela-inspired-his-nfl-path/ Carson Steele Family]
{{Kansas City Chiefs roster navbox}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steele, Carson}}
Category:American football running backs
Category:Ball State Cardinals football players
Category:People from Greenwood, Indiana
Category:Sportspeople from Johnson County, Indiana
Category:Players of American football from Indianapolis