Robert Joseph Francois (born May 14, 1985) 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 ...

player who was a

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

, who won

Super Bowl XLV Super Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...

against the

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. He was signed by the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

as an

undrafted 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 ...

in 2009 and was also a member of the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

that same preseason. He played

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for the

Boston College Eagles The Boston College Eagles are the athletic teams that represent Boston College, located in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level ( Football Bowl Subdivis ...

Early life

Francois played wide receiver,

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and

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for Governor Dummer Academy. As a senior, he gained Team MVP and All-New England honors. He was a two-time All-Independent League first-team selection and played in the 2004 Massachusetts Shriners Football Classic. Francois also excelled on GDA's basketball and track teams. In multiple years he won the New England Prep School 100-meter, 200-meter, 4x100-meter, and 4x400-meter titles. His fastest time in the 100-meter was a 10.8 and in the 200-meter was a 22.3. Before attending GDA, Francois went to Ross Sterling High School in

Baytown, Texas Baytown is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, within Harris County, Texas, Harris and Chambers County, Texas, Chambers counties. Located in the Greater Houston, Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area, it lies on the nor ...

where after his sophomore year he decided to leave to prep school on a scholarship. This decision was made to get a deserving starting role and not have to deal with the politics of the booster club affecting coaches decision on who got on the field at Sterling.

College career

After redshirting at

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

in 2004, Francois played in all twelve games in 2005. He registered 28 tackles (16 solos), 2.0 tackles for loss, one fumble recovery, making at least one tackle in every game. His first collegiate action came during the season opener at

Brigham Young Brigham Young ( ; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1847 until h ...

and made his first tackle late in the first quarter. He finished the game with one unassisted tackle and one assisted. He made one solo tackle against Boise State in the MPC Computers Bowl. Francois played in all thirteen games in 2006, starting in seven. He had 52 tackles, 29 solo stops, 3.5 tackles for loss, and recovered three fumbles. He had four tackles (two solo) against

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

in the Meineke Car Care Bowl. In 2007, after suffering a high ankle sprain in camp Francois was out for 4 weeks and lost his starting position dealing with a nagging injury for the majority of the season. Francois finished the 2007 season with 39 total tackles (26 solos), 2 tackles for loss, and 0.5 sacks in thirteen games. He made five tackles (three solo) and including an assist on a tackle-for-loss against Virginia Tech in the ACC Championship. He registered 3 solo tackles in BC's win over

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...

in the Champs Sports Bowl. In 2008, his senior season, Francois was a team leader and again lost his starting position due to missed time in camp from a bone bruise on his knee. He was a starting ILB who was not starting due to politics by the current coaching staff at the time, but he was given his deserved starting position after Brian Toal broke his leg. The defense fed off Francois' production where he dominated when he was in the game. He was part of the linebacker culture that changed BC's attitude and dominance in the ACC.

Professional career

Minnesota Vikings

After going undrafted in the 2009 NFL draft, Francois was signed by the

as an

. He dealt with a hamstring injury early on in camp coming back and playing in the first two preseason games. Vikings LB Coach at the time Fred Pagac was surprised when Francois was waived on August 18 to make a roster place for the team to sign

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

Brett Favre Brett Lorenzo Favre ( ; born October 10, 1969) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons, primarily with the Green Bay Packers. Favre had 321 cons ...

Detroit Lions

Francois was claimed off waivers the following day by the

on August 19, 2009, where he was there by less than two weeks. He was waived on August 30 before the last preseason game.

Green Bay Packers

Francois was signed to the

practice squad December 7, 2009. On January 11, 2010, Francois signed a reserve/future contract. On October 13, 2010, he was promoted to the active roster due to the injuries of

Nick Barnett Nicholas Alexander Barnett (born May 27, 1981) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Oregon State Beavers football, ...

and Brandon Chillar. Francois was released on November 9, 2010, but re-added to the practice squad on November 15. Francois was then reactivated for the December 5, 2010 game and remained on Packers active roster for the rest of his career starting against the New York Giants and stepping up in the NFC Championship game against the Chicago Bears in 2010, helping gain a ticket to Super Bowl XLV. He then played in his home state of Texas and helped the Green Bay Packers win Super Bowl XLV. On March 15, 2013, Francois re-signed with the Packers on a one-year deal. He tore his achilles after sustaining an unknown strained calf earlier in the season.

References

External links

Boston College Eagles bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Francois, Robert 1985 births Living people Players of American football from Baytown, Texas Players of American football from Houston American football linebackers Boston College Eagles football players Minnesota Vikings players Detroit Lions players Green Bay Packers players The Governor's Academy alumni