Keith Ellison is a career quality starter β a linebacker whose body of work places Ellison in the top half of all players at the position historically. The Knox model values sustained contribution over flash, and Ellison's career arc reflects exactly that kind of reliable professional-grade performance.
Keith Ellison
A quality linebacker with a above-average career β a legitimate starter who contributed meaningfully across their career.
Career Value Β· VORP
VORP 25 Β· #2881 Β· Role PlayerWorth 25 points of value above a freely-available replacement linebacker β top 63% of all 4,642 ranked at the position. 4 of 4 seasons cleared the replacement bar, by +6.3 on average.See board β
Seasons above replacement
4 cleared
Beat replacement (adds to VORP) Below it β adds 0, never a debit
47
Replacement
the KC-H bar
β
4
Seasons over
cleared the bar
Γ
+6.3
Avg surplus
peak +10
4 seasons Γ ~6.3 surplus β VORP 25
Combined Season Grid
The full season-by-season grids, joined on one timeline. Every selected stat family stays visible at onceβno tab hopping.
3 grids split in one view
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Defense | Rushing | Advanced (EPA) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | Att | Yds | TD | Y/A | TD% | 1D | 1D% | Fmb | Pass EPA | Rush EPA | Rec EPA | Pass AirYd | Rec AirYd | |||||
| 2006 | β | BUF | 12 | β | 50 | 20 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 2007 | β | BUF | 12 | β | 35 | 23 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 2008 | β | BUF | 16 | β | 60 | 36 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 6.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 100.0 | 0 | β | β | β | β | β |
| 2008 | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | 2.8 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 | β | BUF | 7 | β | 47 | 20 | 27 | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 4.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 2010 | β | BUF | 3 | β | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| Career | β | 50 | β | 200 | 104 | 96 | 5 | 2 | 1.0 | 8.0 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 6.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 100.0 | 0 | β | 2.8 | β | 0 | 0 | |
Career EPA2.8Β·3 rushingΒ·2.8/season
Rushing
Defense
Advanced (EPA)
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Pass EPA | Rush EPA | Rec EPA | Pass AirYd | Rec AirYd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 24 | β | β | β | β | 2.8 | β | 0 | 0 |
| Career | β | β | β | 0 | 0 |
KV-H Anatomy
KV-H 50 Β· SolidA solid career by KV-H: a remarkably steady profile that scores 50 of 100, era-normalized against tackles/g peers across 4 scored seasons, with a short career trimming the score.
53
Sustained
career value
Γ.6
53
Peak
best 3 seasons
Γ.4
Γ0.93
Longevity
career length
Blend 53 Γ longevity 0.93 = KV-H 50Β· confidence 97%
What builds the career mark of 53
On-field 37.6
Availability 15.4
On-field production Staying available
Season-by-season quality (era-relative tackles/g)
2006bestavg 532009
All-Time Standing
how this career measures against the all-time greats at the position6
Depth
of 100
Reached 1% of the all-time Interceptions leader β a rotational/depth all-time profile at the position.
1% of the all-time Interceptions leader1
0 categories β₯25% of the all-time leader0
2.8 EPA/season over 1 season51
A 0β100 scale where 100 = matched the all-time leaderat this position. Built only from visible encyclopedia data β career production vs. the all-time leader, plus efficiency (EPA) and comparable-player confidence β so it's a transparent context score, not a subjective rating. Tiers: Elite β₯ 85 Β· Strong β₯ 65 Β· Solid β₯ 45 Β· Depth < 45. Comparable-player confidence: 92%.
Career Aging Trajectory
vs. position group average Β· KV-H basisAmber = this player (normalized to own peak). Indigo = average linebackers aging curve. Group peak age: 25. Source: StatVault KV-H era (1999+).
Combine Β· 2006
Percentiles compare each raw measurement against position peers, the full combine pool, and the same draft class where enough samples exist.
4.76s
40-Yard
Below avg Β· 27th pct
Pos 27thAll 38thClass Pos 14thClass All 39th
32.5"
Vertical
Below avg Β· 31th pct
Pos 31thAll 39thClass Pos 14thClass All 30th
115"
Broad Jump
Below avg Β· 31th pct
Pos 31thAll 42thClass Pos 35thClass All 47th
24 reps
Bench
Above avg Β· 66th pct
Pos 66thAll 69thClass Pos 69thClass All 67th
7.22s
3-Cone
Below avg Β· 32th pct
Pos 32thAll 43thClass Pos 26thClass All 43th
4.16s
Shuttle
Strong Β· 80th pct
Pos 80thAll 79thClass Pos 56thClass All 73th
College stats are not imported for this profile yet.
StatVault has the verified college attribution (Oregon State; El Camino; San Diego State), but no parsed college box-score table is present in this profile artifact. The section stays here so every profile has a consistent college-stats landing point without fabricating unavailable rows.
Reference Graph
Career teammates and draft class, derived from year-by-year rosters β every name is linked.
Top Teammates
Rian LindellK5yKyle WilliamsDT5yDonte WhitnerS5yChris KelsayDE5yLee EvansWR5yTerrence McGeeCB5yBrian MoormanP5yRoscoe ParrishWR5yPaul PoslusznyMLB4yAaron SchobelDE4yFred JacksonRB4yBryan ScottLB4yJosh ReedWR4yRyan DenneyDE4yGeorge WilsonS4yJohn McCargoDT4yAshton YoubotyCB4yMarshawn LynchRB3yMarcus StroudDE3yJabari GreerCB3ySpencer JohnsonDT3ySteve JohnsonWR3yLeodis McKelvinCB3yRobert RoyalTE3y
2006 Draft ClassΒ· this player went #178
#166Quinn SypniewskiTE#168Omar GaitherMLB#169Jesse MahelonaDT#170Wali LundyRB#173Reed DoughtyS#175Delanie WalkerTE#176Kevin BootheG#177Jonathan LewisDT#180Lawrence VickersFB#181Baba OshinowoDT#182Montavious StanleyDT#183Johnny JollyDE#184Adam JenningsWR#185Tyrone CulverDB#187Jeromey ClaryG#189Drew ColemanDB
Franchise Succession
the room, before and afterKeith inherited the Buffalo Bills LB room from Angelo Crowell (2004β2007), and handed it to Paul Posluszny (2007β2010).
Similar Players
Statistical + physical similarity across every player in the database, position-relevant (0β100%).
Movementderived from season history
- 2010final season
Last recorded season with BUF
- 2006draft
Drafted by BUF β Round 6, Pick 178
Athletic & Unique Profile
verified measurements and curated source-tagged facts6'0" / 229 lb
Frame
235 lb at 4.76s
Size-speed
32.5" vert / 115" broad
Explosion
24 reps
Bench power
Injury History
4 career games missed (Out)From nflverse weekly injury reports Β· coverage begins 2009.
| Season | Team | Games Out | Designations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | BUF | 2 | W5OutΒ· KneeW7QuestionableΒ· KneeW8QuestionableΒ· KneeW12OutΒ· Knee |
| 2009 | BUF | 2 | W6QuestionableΒ· KneeW10OutΒ· ThighW11OutΒ· Thigh |
Knox
StatVault's proprietary player intelligence, informed by full career data. How Knox works β
Historical Knox Β· KV-H
Era-normalized career quality β z-scored against 4-season peers. See all β
50
peak 53
Season Report CardsΒ· KV-H era-normalized per season
C+2006
C2007
C+2008
C+2009
Availability
Career durability β games played vs. scheduled, across 5 seasons.
63%
Era Translator
Tackles translated to the 2025NFL β each season's standing among its own-era peers, projected onto 2025's scoring environment. Modern-era (1999+) coverage.
| Season | Actual Tackles | Tackles/G | β 2025 Tackles | β 2025 /G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 50 | 4.2 | 57+7 | 3.4 |
| 2007 | 35 | 2.9 | 31-4 | 1.8 |
| 2008 | 60 | 3.8 | 49-11 | 2.9 |
| 2009 | 47 | 6.7 | 108+61 | 6.4 |
Data: nflverse:players, nflverse:player_stats, nflverse:player_stats_def, nflverse:combine, nflverse:draft_picks, nflverse:advanced-epa (CC-BY 4.0), nflverse:injuries Β· multi-source verified via the StatVault Oracle Β· updated 6/18/2026
Career Value Β· VORP
25 career value over replacement β #2881 all-time of 4,642. 6.3/season above a replacement-level LB.
Draft OutcomeSteal β
Pick #178 (Rd 6) Β· BUF Β· 2006 Β· +23.1 vs expected KV-H
50actual
26.9 expected Β· Ξ+23.1
Fan Rating
Rate Keith Ellison β All-Time
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