Charles Roberts (born April 3, 1979) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

who played for the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division (CFL), West division. They play thei ...

and

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions playe ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL). In 2024 he was inducted into the Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ Ring of Honour.

College career

Roberts attended Sacramento State, where he set numerous DI-AA rushing records for the Sac State Hornets

team, including total rushing yards and most yards in a game (409 yards vs Idaho State in 1999). His nickname while with the Hornets was "Choo-Choo Charlie", in reference to the train that would often come by behind the stadium during games and practices. Upon graduation, he went to

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, Canada to play for the

team, the

Blue Bombers

In his 8-year tenure he established himself as one of the premier running backs in the Canadian Football League, earning the nickname "Blink" for his amazing quickness and agility. He led the league in rushing yards in 2006 with 1609 yards and 10 touchdowns, earning a nomination as the

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's Most Outstanding Player. Off the field he experienced highs and lows. The enigmatic back missed team flights, led the league in all-purpose yards, pondered retirement, led the league in rushing yards, publicly criticized some decisions, and signed a long-term big money deal to remain as the face of the Bombers. Through the 2006 season, Roberts rushed for 8,091 yards in just six seasons with the Blue Bombers. He also tallied up 2,732 receiving yards and 57 touchdowns. On September 2, 2007 Roberts passed Leo Lewis to become the Winnipeg Blue Bombers all-time leading rusher. At the time, he was fifth all-time in CFL career rushing totals. Andrew Harris surpassed Charles Roberts for fifth during the CFL's 2023 rendition of the "Touchdown Atlantic" (TDA), an event which only had been played once during the CFL preseason in 2005 when Roberts was still playing. Roberts was selected in 2005 as one of the 20 All-Time Blue Bomber Greats. On September 1, 2008, Roberts was traded to the BC Lions for fellow RB Joe Smith.

BC Lions

On September 13, 2008, in a game against the Roughriders, Roberts ran to surpass 10,000 rushing yards in his CFL career. On December 3, 2008, the Lions announced that Roberts' 2009 option was not being renewed and as a result he became a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. He retired from the game shortly thereafter.

Post-football

Since retiring as a player, Roberts moved to and now resides in

Long Beach Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. On September 18, 2013, Roberts was inducted into the Blue Bombers' Hall of Fame. In 2014, he was inducted into the

Canadian Football Hall of Fame The Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates achievements in Canadian football. It is maintained by the Canadian Football League (CFL). It includes displays about the CFL, ...

Statistics

References

External links

Player Profile on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers' "All-Time Greats" list
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Charles 1979 births Living people BC Lions players Canadian Football Hall of Fame inductees Canadian Football League Rookie of the Year Award winners Canadian football running backs People from Montclair, California Sacramento State Hornets football players Players of American football from San Bernardino County, California Winnipeg Blue Bombers players 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen Players of Canadian football from California