Colorado Football: Former Buff Ken Crawley finding success with New Orleans Saints
In recent years, it’s been rare to see a member of the Colorado Buffaloes football team make it to the professional level. When one of those players does, we want to make sure to give that player credit and let them bask in our spotlight.
Former Colorado defensive back Ken Crawley is one of those players, taking the route of undrafted rookie to make it in the league.
Signed as an undrafted rookie by the New Orleans Saints following the most recent NFL draft, Crawley was a long shot to make the roster. Not only did he survive the final roster cut, but he’s building a role for himself in the New Orleans secondary.
Crawley has appeared in all 14 games for the Saints this season, racking up 41 tackles while recovering a fumble and breaking up eight passes.
Though Crawley played in 47 games at Colorado and had 154 tackles to go with 25 passes defensed in his college career, his pro prospects weren’t great. He managed to go to the one spot in the NFL where there was opportunity aplenty in the secondary.
Of course, Crawley’s journey to the pros didn’t come without some stories off the field. His best friend from childhood was murdered and there was also that incident in which another one of his old neighborhood friends was arrested in Boulder for a murder case in Baltimore.
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Ken Craw
Crawley believes the second incident contributed to him not being selected in the draft.
“A lot of kids look up to me because I made it out. I’m actually turning all the negative stuff I was surrounded by into a positive and getting people more involved in football. They see me at this level and that I can make it. If they see I can make it, they can make it. I’m that guy in the neighborhood”, Crawley told Cameron Wolfe of the Denver Post back in March.
Delvin Breaux has become a solid cornerback for the Saints but outside of him, the team doesn’t have a player who stands out at that position. Don’t be surprised to see Crawley competing for one of the starting spots as early as next season.