Chad Kelly’s NFL dream isn’t over just yet.
The 32-year-old Toronto Argonauts quarterback told The Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson that he still hopes to return to the league one day.
“That’s always the goal," Kelly said. “It’s always a goal of quarterbacks, whatever league you’re in, is to get to the top of the top. … My talent speaks for itself.”
A native of Buffalo and the nephew of legendary Buffalo Bills quarterback Jim Kelly, Kelly was originally selected with a seventh-round pick by the Denver Broncos in 2017 out of Ole Miss. He would make one appearance for the team, in 2018, before being released following a bizarre incident that saw Kelly arrested on first-degree criminal trespassing charges after he entered a stranger’s home in the early morning hours after leaving a Halloween party hosted by teammate Von Miller.
Following portions of two seasons on the Indianapolis Colts’ practice roster, Kelly would eventually land in the CFL with the Argos. After spurring the team to a fourth-quarter comeback to win the Grey Cup in 2022, Kelly became Toronto starter in 2023. That season, he would throw for 4,123 yards on 270-for-390 passing and 23 touchdowns to win the league’s Most Outstanding Player Award.
But the good times didn’t last for Kelly. He found himself suspended for the first nine games of the 2024 season for a violation of the the league’s gender-based violence policy stemming from an investigation into a lawsuit filed against Kelly and the team by one of its former strength-and-conditioning coaches who alleged unwanted romantic advances from Kelly.
Kelly says that his former behaviour is now in the past.
“You realize you do things at a younger age and you can be young and dumb, but then you become a father, a husband and you start a foundation and a lot changes,’’ he said. “Things happen and you just try to grow. I wish I’d met my wife 15 years earlier because I think I’d be on a way different path.”
Kelly did not play during the 2025 season. Still recuperating from a devastating leg injury incurred during the 2024 East Final against the Montreal Alouettes where his right tibia and fibia were fractured for most of the season, the Argos opted to activate Kelly with the playoffs out of reach. Kelly says he’s now ready to return.
“I pray that I’m healthy and I have a great season,’’ Kelly told Tomasson. “We do great things, and you never know [about going back to the NFL]. You leave it in God’s hands.”
The Argonauts open up their 2026 training camp on May 8. The Boatmen first see preseason action on May 23 against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Their regular season opens in Week 2 on June 12 with a visit to the Alouettes.
