Robert J. Gallery (born July 26, 1980) 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 an

offensive guard Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative (Netherlands), Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tende ...

for eight seasons 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

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

and received

unanimous All-American The College Football All-America Team is an honorific college football all-star team compiled after each NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) season to recognize that season's most outstanding performers at their respective positions. ...

recognition. He was selected with the second overall pick by the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team based in Oakland, California, from its founding in 1960 to 1981, and again from 1995 to 2019 before Oakland Raiders relocation to Las Vegas, relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan ...

in the

2004 NFL draft The 2004 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held from April 24–25, 2004, at the Theate ...

. He also played for the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

Early life

Gallery was born in

Manchester, Iowa Manchester is a city in Delaware Township and the county seat of Delaware County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,065 at the time of the 2020 census. Manchester is located at the intersection of U.S. Route 20 and State Highway 13 ...

. He attended East Buchanan High School in

Winthrop, Iowa Winthrop is a city in Buchanan County, Iowa, United States. The population was 823 at the time of the 2020 census. History Winthrop was platted in 1857. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , al ...

and starred in

, basketball and track. In football, he played

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

and

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 ...

and also handled punting and kickoff duties. He was an all-conference honorable mention selection as a sophomore before being named first-team all-conference as a junior and senior. Gallery helped his high-school team to a three-year record of 24–8, including a 19–2 record in district play. He was a ''

Des Moines Register ''The Des Moines Register'' is the daily morning newspaper of Des Moines, Iowa, United States. History Early period The first newspaper in Des Moines was the ''Iowa Star''. In July 1849, Barlow Granger began the paper in an abandoned log cab ...

'' Class 1A first-team all-state selection as a senior. In addition to his athletic accomplishments, Gallery earned the rank of

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of Scouting America. Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Scout rank has been earned by over ...

College career

Gallery attended the

and played for the Hawkeyes football team from 1999 to 2003. His older brother Nick had been an All-Big Ten punter for the Hawkeyes, and his younger brother John later became a punter for the team. After redshirting in 1999, Gallery had three catches for 52 yards as a starting tight end as a freshman before moving to the tackle position. He started six games at the right tackle position as a freshman. As a sophomore, Gallery started every game at left tackle and made vast improvements throughout the year. He helped Iowa lead the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

in scoring in 2001 as Iowa qualified for its first bowl game in four years. As a junior in 2002, Gallery started all 13 games at left tackle and was a first-team All-Big Ten selection. He helped lead Iowa to its first Big Ten title in 12 years and its first undefeated conference season in 80 years. He also won the team's Hustle Award. In 2003, Gallery led Iowa to another 10-win season and was voted as Iowa's co-captain and co-MVP for the season. He was a first-team All-Big Ten selection for the second straight year and named the Big Ten offensive lineman of the year. He was recognized as a unanimous first-team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

as a senior in

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

. He was awarded the 2003

Outland Trophy The Outland Trophy is awarded to the best college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that g ...

, making him the third lineman from Iowa to win the award (along with

Alex Karras Alexander George Karras (July 15, 1935October 10, 2012) was an American professional American football, football player, professional wrestler, sportscaster, and actor. He was a four-time Pro Bowl selection playing defensive tackle for the Detro ...

and

Cal Jones Calvin Jack Jones (February 7, 1933 – December 9, 1956) was an American professional football guard. Jones played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes and he is one of only two players (along with Nile Kinnick) to have his jersey number ret ...

). He was also a three-time academic All-Big Ten selection at Iowa. Gallery graduated with a bachelor's degree in education. As part of his pre-professional training, he taught at two local elementary schools. On January 9, 2023, the

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...

selected Gallery for induction into the 2023 Class.

Professional career

Oakland Raiders

Gallery was selected with the second overall pick in the

by the

. He was regarded as "the best lineman to come out of college in years", with a perfect 9.0 prospect rating, the highest for any offensive lineman. In 2004, Gallery started 15 games at right tackle and surrendered three sacks. In 2005, he started all 16 games at right tackle and allowed 3.5 sacks. The Raiders moved him to left tackle at the beginning of the 2006 preseason. In the Raiders' first game of the 2006 regular season, Gallery was part of an offensive line that surrendered nine sacks (at least three of which were charged to him) to the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

. He played in 13 games during the season and allowed 10.5 sacks, placing him fourth in the league despite missing three games. In 2007, Oakland moved Gallery to left guard. Although Gallery had generally been considered a bust at the left tackle position for which he was selected and had limited success at the right tackle position, his performance improved as a left guard.

Seattle Seahawks

On July 27, 2011, Gallery agreed to join the Seattle Seahawks on a three-year deal worth a reported $15 million. He was released after one season.

New England Patriots

On March 19, 2012, Gallery signed with the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

on a one-year deal. Gallery announced his retirement from professional football on August 4, 2012.

References

External links

Iowa Hawkeyes bio

Oakland Raiders bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gallery, Robert 1980 births Living people All-American college football players American football offensive tackles American football offensive guards Iowa Hawkeyes football players New England Patriots players Oakland Raiders players People from Buchanan County, Iowa Players of American football from Iowa Seattle Seahawks players People from Manchester, Iowa Second overall NFL draft picks College Football Hall of Fame inductees