Bobby Carpenter (American football)

For others of the same name, see Bobby Carpenter (disambiguation).

Bobby Carpenter

File:Bobby Carpenter (American football).JPG Carpenter in 2011, while with the Lions.
No. 54, 52, 50, 59
Linebacker
Personal information
Date of birth: (1983-08-01) August 1, 1983
Place of birth: Lancaster, Ohio
Career information
College: Ohio State
NFL Draft: 2006 / Round: 1 / Pick: 18
No regular season or postseason appearances
Career history
* Dallas Cowboys ( 2006– 2009) St. Louis Rams ( 2010)* Miami Dolphins ( 2010) Detroit Lions ( 2010– 2011) New England Patriots ( 2012)
Career highlights and awards
* 2× Second-team All-Big Ten (2004, 2005) BCS National Champion (2002)
Total tackles	167
Sacks	3.5
Forced fumbles	0
Fumble recoveries	1
Interceptions	1
Defensive touchdowns	1
Stats at NFL.com
Stats at pro-football-reference.com

Robert Joseph Carpenter, III (born August 1, 1983) is a former American football linebacker. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the first round of the 2006 NFL Draft after playing college football at Ohio State. Carpenter has also played for the St. Louis Rams, Miami Dolphins, Detroit Lions and New England Patriots.

Early years

Robert Carpenter attended Lancaster High School in Lancaster, Ohio, a school who Super Bowl Champion Jim Cordle also attended and graduated from. In addition to being a football standout, Bobby was also a member of the swim team. During his senior year, Bobby was selected as All-Ohio first team (football), and also went to the District Finals in swimming.

College career

In 50 games at The Ohio State University, Robert Carpenter started 26 times. Bobby registered 191 tackles (121 solos) with 14.5 sacks and 23.5 for losses. Bobby forced two fumbles, deflected seven passes and had three interceptions.

In 2002, Bobby played in every game as a true freshman,. The next year, Bobby started three contests at strong-side outside linebacker, totaling 37 tackles (24 solos) with 4.5 sacks, 6.5 stops for losses and a pair of forced fumbles.

Robert Carpenter was a full-time starter in 2004, lining up at strong-side linebacker. Bobby finished second on the team with 93 tackles (46 solos) and registered two sacks with 6.5 stops behind the line of scrimmage.  Robert Carpenter also deflected three passes and intercepted three others. As a senior in 2005, Bobby started first eleven games of the 2005 season, finishing fifth on the squad with 49 tackles and second on the team with eight sacks and 10.5 stops for losses, earning second-team All-Big Ten Conference honors. In the final game against Michigan, Bobby fractured his right leg/ankle and was unable to play in the Fiesta Bowl. 

Professional career

Pre-draft

Pre-draft measureables

Ht	Wt	40-yd dash	10-yd split	20-yd split	20-ss	3-cone	Vert	Broad	BP	Wonderlic
6 ft 2 in	249 lb	4.66 s			4.31 s	6.88 s	22½ in	10 ft 4 in	20 rep	25

Dallas Cowboys

Robert Carpenter was the Dallas Cowboys' first round selection (18th overall) in the 2006 NFL Draft. It was later reported that head coach Bill Parcells influenced the organization into drafting Bobby , based on his previous experience coaching  Robert Carpenter's father, Robby . His best game with the Cowboys came in a 2006 playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks, where Bobby started at outside linebacker and recorded five tackles and three deflected passes.

In 2009, after playing mostly on special teams Bobby took over the team's nickel linebacker role. Over his four-year stint with the Cowboys Bobby failed to establish a starting role, registering 96 tackles and 29 special teams tackles. In the fourth episode of the 2008 Hard Knocks series, Robert Carpenter was continuously beaten in a pads and shorts practice by right tackle Marc Colombo. During that practice Marc Colombo referred to Bobby as "Barbie Carpenter", while also making fun of his shoulder length blonde hair.

St. Louis Rams

Robert Carpenter was traded from the Dallas Cowboys to the St. Louis Rams in exchange for offensive tackle Alex Barron on May 10, 2010. Bobby was cut on September 4.

Miami Dolphins

On September 6, 2010, the Miami Dolphins signed Bobby Carpenter as a free agent reuniting Bobby with Bill Parcells who drafted Bobby with the Dallas Cowboys. Bobby was waived on October 18, because of a mistake on his special teams blocking assignment against the Green Bay Packers, that came on the heels of two previous blocking assignment errors against the New England Patriots.

Detroit Lions

Robert Carpenter was signed as a free agent by the Detroit Lions on October 20, 2010.

On October 2, 2011 Bobby had six tackles, a pass deflected and made the play of the game, returning an interception for a touchdown, which sparked a second half come-from-behind victory against his former team, the Dallas Cowboys. The 24-point collapse was the largest blown lead in team history and eventually cost them a chance to qualify for the post-season.

New England Patriots

On April 5, 2012, Robert Carpenter was signed as a free agent by the New England Patriots. On October 2, the Patriots resigned Robert Carpenter on account of the injury of Dont'a Hightower. Bobby was released after playing in four games on October 30, mostly on special teams and registering two special teams tackles.

NFL statistics

Year	Team	GP	COMB	TOTAL	AST	SACK	FF	FR	FR YDS	INT	IR YDS	AVG IR	LNG	TD	PD
2006	DAL	13	19	15	4	1.5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
2007	DAL	16	18	11	7	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2008	DAL	13	13	9	4	0.0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2009	DAL	16	46	37	9	2.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
2010	MIA	5	10	9	1	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2010	DET	10	30	21	9	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
2011	DET	16	29	24	5	0.0	0	0	0	1	34	34	34	1	1
2012	NE	4	2	0	2	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Career		93	167	126	41	3.5	0	1	0	1	34	34	34	1	5

Personal life

Carpenter is the son of former Houston Oilers, New York Giants and Los Angeles Rams running back Rob Carpenter. Bobby and his father both played for Bill Parcells. Bobby has three younger brothers: Jonathan, Georgie & Nathan.

After completing his NFL career in 2013 Bobby returned to Ohio State and completed his MBA with a specialization in Finance and Strategy. He is now an adjunct professor teaching a course at the Fisher College of Business in Private Equity.

He is currently a board member of the 2nd and Seven Foundation , which promotes literacy to 2nd graders throughout Columbus, Ohio, and the nation, and heavily involved with the Buckeye Cruise for Cancer that has raised over $20 million for the James Cancer Hospital since 2008.

Media

In 2013 Bobby joined 97.1 The Fan in Columbus, Ohio as an evening host on the Buckeye Show from 6 PM to 8 PM. During that time he also appear on Wall to Wall Sports for WBNS 10TV, which is also owned by Dispatch Media Group. Bobby has worked the Ohio State Spring game since 2016 for BTN and has been a color analyst for ESPN 3 since 2017.

In 2018 Bobby became a regular contributor to ESPN's Get Up, which airs daily from 8 AM to 10 AM EST.