Jamaal Charles

Jamaal Charles

Charles with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2010
No. -- Free agent
Position:	Running back
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1986-12-27) December 27, 1986 (age 30)
Place of birth:	Port Arthur, Texas
Height:	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:	200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High school:	Port Arthur (TX) Memorial
College:	Texas
NFL Draft:	2008 / Round: 3 / Pick: 73
Career history
Kansas City Chiefs (2008–2016)
Career highlights and awards
4× Pro Bowl (2010, 2012–2014) 2× First-team All-Pro (2010, 2013) Second-team All-Pro (2012) NFL rushing touchdowns leader (2013) First-team All-Big 12 (2007) Second-team All-Big 12 (2005) BCS national champion (2005) Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year (2005) NFL record 5.5 career rushing average for a running back
Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2016
Rushing attempts: 1,332 Rushing yards: 7,260 Rushing average: 5.5 Receptions: 285 Receiving yards: 2,457 Total touchdowns: 64 Player stats at NFL.com

Jamaal RaShaad Jones Charles (born December 27, 1986) is an American football running back who is a free agent. He played college football for the University of Texas, and was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the third round of the 2008 NFL Draft.

Charles's first year as a Chief was hardly in the spotlight; as a backup to halfback Larry Johnson, Charles rushed only 67 times for 357 yards. His breakout season came the following year in 2009. In his second year, Charles rushed 190 times for 1,120 yards, despite only starting 10 games after Larry Johnson was suspended. Shortly thereafter, Johnson was released, leaving Charles as Kansas City's starting halfback.

As of the 2015 season, he is the NFL's all-time leader in career yards-per-carry among running backs, with a 5.5 average.

Charles has reported being diagnosed with a learning disability as a child, having difficulty reading, and being mocked and teased. In 2015, he shared his experience including being invited to participate in the Special Olympics: "[...] I was afraid. I was lost. When I was a boy, I had trouble reading. I found out I had a learning disability. People made fun of me. They said I would never go anywhere. But I learned I can fly. When I was 10 years old, I had a chance to compete in the Special Olympics. That's right, the Special Olympics gave me my first chance to discover the talent I did not know that I had. When I competed in the Special Olympics, I found out just how fast I was. I stood high on the podium, getting the gold medal in track and field."

In his junior year, Charles ran for 2,051 yards and 25 touchdowns while leading Memorial High School of Port Arthur, Texas to the 5A Division II quarterfinals. He was named first team all-state by the Texas Sports Writers Association and second team all-state by the Associated Press.