Ellis Hobbs Ellis Hue Hobbs III ( born May 16 , 1983 ) is a former American football cornerback who played for six seasons in the National Football League . He played college football for Iowa State . He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the third round of the 2005 NFL Draft and played for them from 2005 – 2008 . He was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in April 2009 and played for them from 2009 – 2010 before a neck injury ended his career . Hobbs shares the NFL record for the longest kickoff return ( 108 yards ) with Randall Cobb and Jacoby Jones , a feat he accomplished on September 9 , 2007 in a game against the New York Jets . Early years . Hobbs attended DeSoto High School in DeSoto , Texas , where he was a standout in football and track . In track , he participated on the 4x100 and 4x400 relay teams and the long jump . In football , he starred at cornerback as well as running back ; he ran for 1 , 701 yards on 233 carries with 29 touchdowns and caught 18 passes for 265 yards and three touchdowns . College career . Hobbs was just seven credits short of graduating when he entered the NFL , and in 2009 ( four years after leaving college ) he completed his degree and graduated from Iowa State University with a bachelor ' s degree in art and design . A three - year starter at right cornerback , he compiled 209 tackles , two sacks , three fumble recoveries , two forced fumbles , and 29 pass deflections during his tenure . He also found success as a kick returner , gaining 490 yards on 24 career kick returns . He earned All - Big 12 Conference first - team honors as a senior . Hobbs also received the Academic Athlete of the Year Award and was a finalist for Christian Athlete of the Year at ISU . Professional career . New England Patriots . 2005 – 06 seasons . Despite limited playing time early in the season , Hobbs made a number of contributions to the Patriots in his rookie season . A string of injuries in the Patriots secondary resulted in Hobbs starting at cornerback the final eight games of the season . Hobbs caught three interception s and earned 371 yards on 15 kickoff returns ( including a crucial 35 - yard return in the Patriots ' game - winning drive against the Pittsburgh Steelers ) . Although Hobbs initially won the starting cornerback job in 2006 opposite Asante Samuel , Hobbs struggled somewhat during his second year in the NFL , in part because of a broken wrist suffered early in the season . Hobbs , who wore a black cast for much of the season , missed a couple of games and lost his job as starter during the second half of the season . Nevertheless , he had two interceptions for the season ( one in garbage time against the Vikings , which he returned 70 yards ) . In addition , filling in for an injured Laurence Maroney at kick returner , he returned a kick against the Miami Dolphins for 51 yards , and returned a kick against the Houston Texans for 93 yards and a touchdown , the first of his career , and the first kickoff return for a touchdown by a Patriot since Bethel Johnson in 2004 . For the season , he recorded 47 total tackles , 2 interceptions , and 4 passes defensed . He also recorded 14 total tackles in the Patriots ' three playoff games . Hobbs performed well in the 2006 playoffs , breaking up several potential touchdown passes , including two in the Divisional round against the San Diego Chargers , and one in the AFC Championship Game against the Indianapolis Colts . That play against the Colts was flagged as pass interference , a call that proved controversial . Greg Aiello , NFL vice president of communications , stated it was correctly flagged as pass interference . However there were also reports that the NFL admitted the call was incorrect , and apologized to Hobbs . Hobbs also returned a kickoff 80 yards in the AFC Championship Game . 2007 – 08 seasons . On September 9 , 2007 , Hobbs broke the record for the longest kickoff return in NFL history when he ran a Mike Nugent kickoff back 108 yards for a touchdown against the New York Jets at Giants Stadium . At the time , it also tied the record for the longest play in NFL history . In Week 3 , against the Bills , Hobbs recorded his first NFL sack when he brought down J . P . Losman on a blitz ; he also forced a fumble , which was recovered by Patriots defensive end Jarvis Green . In Week 10 , in the rematch at Buffalo , Hobbs recovered a fumble by Bills running back Dwayne Wright ( forced by Patriots safety James Sanders ) , and returned it for his second return touchdown of the season . In Week 17 against the New York Giants , Hobbs intercepted a pass by Giants quarterback Eli Manning in the fourth quarter , which ultimately led to the Patriots ' go - ahead touchdown in the game that completed New England ' s perfect 16 - 0 season . He also intercepted a pass by Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers in the AFC Championship Game . In Super Bowl XLII , Hobbs again intercepted a Manning pass that deflected off the hands of New York Giants rookie wide receiver , Steve Smith . Near the conclusion of the game , wide receiver Plaxico Burress beat Hobbs on a 13 - yard touchdown pass with 35 seconds left to give the Giants the winning score . Hobbs played in the Super Bowl with a torn labrum in his shoulder in addition to the chronic groin pain previously reported . Hobbs had Dr . James Andrews repair the shoulder , which was originally injured in Week 9 , on February 12 . In 2008 , Hobbs intercepted three passes and set the Patriots single game record for yards on kick returns , with 237 yards in a loss to Miami in Week 3 . He also returned his third career touchdown against the Oakland Raiders in Week 15 which once again earned him Special Teams Player of the Week honors . He ended the season leading the AFC , and second in the NFL , in kick return average . Philadelphia Eagles . On the second day of the 2009 NFL Draft , the Patriots traded Hobbs to the Philadelphia Eagles for two fifth - round selections , which the Patriots traded for fourth - and sixth - round selections ; the Patriots ultimately drafted guard Rich Ohrnberger and long snapper Jake Ingram with the picks they received for Hobbs . Hobbs won the starting kick returner job over rookie wide receiver Jeremy Maclin for the 2009 season . On November 11 , Hobbs was placed on injured reserve with a neck injury . Hobbs was re - signed to a one - year contract on March 30 , 2010 . On April 2 , the Eagles traded starting cornerback Sheldon Brown to the Cleveland Browns , with Hobbs now favored to start alongside former Patriots teammate Asante Samuel . In the early third quarter of the Eagles ' November 21 , 2010 game against the Giants , Hobbs took a blow to the head from the Giants ' Dave Tollefson while returning a kick , and had to be carted off the field . He suffered a disc injury and was placed on injured reserve . He announced his retirement on July 28 , 2011 .