2018: Appeared in 14 games with three starts at RB and was inactive two others…Carried the ball 106 times for 554 yards (5.2 avg.) and three TDs…Posted 39 receptions for 404 yards (10.4 avg.) and three TDs, including a career-long 44-yard TD catch…Passed Hank Bauer for the second-most scrimmage TDs by an undrafted RB in team history over a player’s first two seasons, reaching 11 career scrimmage scores in the regular-season finale…The receiving scores brought his career total to six, making him the sixth undrafted RB in NFL history to have at least six TD catches in his first two seasons…Became the first undrafted RB to record five-plus TD catches in his first two seasons since 1966 (Dallas RB Dan Reeves had nine TD catches from 1965-66)…The six receiving TDs tied RB Mike Tolbert for the third-most in team history by an undrafted RB…Became the first undrafted Charger to record a rushing TD and a receiving TD in each of his first two seasons…Recorded nine tackles on special teams, giving him 26 for his career…Participated in both playoff games for the first postseason action of his career…Recorded 11 carries for 29 yards (2.6 avg.) while adding seven catches for 33 receiving yards (4.7 avg.)…Registered a tackle on special teams…Awards: Pro Football Journal Second-Team All-AFC (Third Down RB)…vs. Kansas City (Sept. 9): Finished with five carries for 39 yards (7.8 avg.) and five receptions for a career-high 87 yards (17.4 avg.) and a TD…The 126 scrimmage yards were a single-game career high, beating his mark of 119 in Week 10 of 2017 at Jacksonville…Midway through the second quarter, hauled in the 13-yard TD pass from QB Philip Rivers, marking Rivers’ 343rd career TD passes for sole possession of sixth in NFL history…On the play, got behind LB Anthony Hitchens in the front left corner of the end zone as Rivers stood tall in the face of pressure…Earlier in the game, corralled a pass down the left sideline that was tipped by WR Keenan Allen for a 30-yard gain, maintaining possession after an illegal hit by DB Ron Parker…at Buffalo (Sept. 16): Posted a career best with a game-high 77 rushing yards on 11 carries (7.0 avg.), surpassing his previous high of 49 yards (Dec. 10, 2017 vs. Washington) with 10 minutes remaining in the second quarter…Added three receptions for 21 yards (7.0 avg.)…Took a sweep handoff from left-to-right for 16 yards in the first quarter, getting downfield blocks from TE Virgil Green and WR Tyrell Williams…Posted two carries of 15-plus yards in a three-play stretch in the second quarter…Took the first handoff off tackle to the left with a block from Green pulling to the left before breaking a tackle attempt of S Micah Hyde for a 22-yard gain…Two plays later, received another pulling block from Green to spring him free on an end-around to the left for 16 yards…at Los Angeles Rams (Sept. 23): Carried the ball four times for 47 yards (11.8 avg.)…Caught three passes for 24 yards (8.0 avg.)…Posted a game-long 32-yard run in the third quarter, juking past S Lamarcus Joyner in the open field after receiving sealing blocks from G Michael Schofield III, Virgil Green, FB Derek Watt and C Mike Pouncey…Added a tackle on special teams…vs. San Francisco (Sept. 30): Hauled in two catches for 31 yards (15.5 avg.), including a 22-yard score…The receiving TD marked his second of the year and fifth of his career, making him the first undrafted RB to catch five-plus TD passes in the first two seasons of his professional career since 1966 (Dan Reeves had nine from 1965-66)…On the score, lined up split wide to the right and ran a go-route down the sideline, getting behind the single-man coverage of LB Fred Warner to catch the pass from Philip Rivers in the end zone…Added 25 rushing yards on eight attempts (3.1 avg.)…Registered a special teams tackle…vs. Oakland (Oct. 7): Hauled in the sixth TD pass of his career on a career-long 44-yard catch-and-run to become the sixth-ever undrafted RB to have six-plus TD receptions in his first two seasons…On the play, caught the ball in the left flat, juking by LB Tahir Whitehead and CB Daryl Worley and running down the sideline for the score while getting a block from Keenan Allen…Posted six carries for 15 yards (2.5 avg.)…Recorded two special teams tackles…at Cleveland (Oct. 14): Carried the ball seven times for 60 yards (8.6 avg.)…Part of a rushing attack that registered 246 yards on the ground, the most by a Chargers offense since 2008…Recorded two carries for 10-plus yards within a three-play span in the third quarter, including a 13-yard gain where he broke three tackles…In the fourth quarter, took a shotgun handoff to the left for 20 yards, getting key blocks from G Dan Feeney, T Russell Okung, C/G Scott Quessenberry and Virgil Green…Posted a tackle on special teams…vs. Tennessee (Wembley Stadium, Oct. 21): Made the first start at RB of his career in place of an injured Melvin Gordon…Carried the ball 12 times for 42 yards (3.5 avg.) and tied a single-game career high with five receptions for 26 yards (5.2 avg.)…Took a handoff in the third quarter for an 11-yard gain, weaving through blocks from Mike Pouncey, Dan Feeney and Virgil Green…at Seattle (Nov. 4): Carried the ball three times for 21 yards (7.0 avg.) and registered a 13-yard reception…Took a jet-sweep to the left in the first quarter for a 16-yard gain behind blocks from Virgil Green and TE Sean Culkin…at Oakland (Nov. 11): Carried the football three times for 19 yards (6.3 avg.)…Registered five tackles on special teams…vs. Denver (Nov. 18): Posted 29 rushing yards on six attempts (4.8 avg.) while registering two receptions for 40 yards (20.0 avg.)…Took his longest run of the day 17 yards on a reverse behind blocks from Philip Rivers and Keenan Allen…In the fourth quarter, hauled in a pass on a drag-route that went for a 23-yard gain after breaking a tackle attempt by ILB Josey Jewell…vs. Arizona (Nov. 25): Recorded the third game of his career with 100-plus scrimmage yards, finishing the day with 103…Set a single-game career high with 10 catches, gaining 68 yards on those receptions (6.8 avg.)…Carried the ball five times for 35 yards (7.0 avg.) and a TD, his first rushing score of the year, becoming the first undrafted Charger in history to score a rushing and receiving TD in each of his first two seasons…Set up his own two-yard score one play earlier by taking a pitch to the left in the third quarter on fourth-and-one for 13 yards, sprinting around S Antoine Bethea and breaking the tackle attempt of CB Patrick Peterson to move the chains…Earlier in the third quarter, broke tackle attempts by LB Gerald Hodges and CB Leonard Johnson on a 14-yard catch-and-run on an underneath route…at Pittsburgh (Dec. 2): Started at RB for the second time in his career…Carried the ball a career-high 13 times for 21 yards (1.6 avg.)…Registered five receptions for 22 yards (4.4 avg.)…vs. Cincinnati (Dec. 9): Punched in a rushing TD and had 66 yards on the ground on 15 attempts (4.4 avg.)…The rushing score gave him 10 career scrimmage TDs to tie Hank Bauer for the second-most in team history by an undrafted RB through his first two seasons…Registered the five-yard TD in the second quarter, cutting at the line of scrimmage behind a crashing block from T Sam Tevi and a sealing block from TE Antonio Gates before powering through S Shawn Williams and LB Nick Vigil at the goal line…Set up the score by taking a screen pass in the left flat 21 yards to the five-yard line…Added a pair of receptions for 28 yards (14.0 avg.)…On the game’s opening drive, posted carries of 18 and 15 yards…Started at RB for the third time…at Kansas City (Dec. 13): Inactive (neck/concussion)…vs. Baltimore (Dec. 22): Inactive (neck)…at Denver (Dec. 30): Carried the ball eight times for 58 yards (7.3 avg.) and a TD…Took a fourth quarter handoff to the right, bouncing it outside behind blocks from Tyrell Williams and Sean Culkin before breaking a tackle for a 41-yard gain…Later on the same drive, powered up the middle for a one-yard score through two Denver defenders…at Baltimore (AFC Wild Card, Jan. 6): Saw action in the first postseason game of his career, participating on 39 offensive plays and four on special teams…Carried the ball 11 times for 29 yards (2.6 avg.) and registered 14 receiving yards on four catches (3.5 avg.)…at New England (AFC Divisional, Jan. 13): Caught three passes for 19 yards (6.3 avg.)…Added a tackle on special teams.
2017: Appeared in all 16 games…Scored a 35-yard TD on the first carry of his career…Registered 47 carries for 260 yards (5.5 avg.) and two TDs…Posted 27 receptions for 279 yards (10.3 avg.) and three TDs…Recorded two TD catches of 20-plus yards in the contest at Jacksonville, becoming the first RB to do so in a single game since RB Jamaal Charles (Dec. 15, 2013)…His three TD catches were the most by an undrafted rookie RB in Chargers history and tied RB Don Woods (1974) and RB James Brooks (1981) for the most by a rookie RB in team annals…Returned five kickoffs for 85 yards (17.0 avg.)…Added 17 special teams tackles...at Denver (Sept. 11): Made his NFL debut in his home state of Colorado…Posted two receptions for 18 yards (9.0 avg.) while seeing action on three offensive plays and 17 on special teams…Registered a special teams tackle on punt coverage, pinning Denver inside its own 20…vs. Miami (Sept. 17): Returned three kickoffs for 49 yards (16.3 avg.) with a long of 22 yards…Added a special teams tackle on punt coverage…vs. Kansas City (Sept. 24): Registered a six-yard reception…vs. Philadelphia (Oct. 1): Recorded a TD on the first carry of his career, a 35-yard score in the fourth quarter…Forced a missed tackle by OLB Mychal Kendricks on second down before running away from defenders for the score…Added two receptions for 23 yards (11.5 avg.)…Contributed with two special teams tackles on punt coverage that pinned the Eagles inside the 20-yard line…at New York Giants (Oct. 8): Posted four carries…Registered career highs in receptions (three) and receiving yards (28) for a 9.3 yards-per-reception average…Contributed with a tackle on kickoff coverage, pinning the Giants inside their own 20-yard line…at Oakland (Oct. 15): Recorded a one-yard run and an eight-yard reception…Totaled two special teams tackles on punt coverage…Converted a reception on third-and-eight to move the chains on the team’s first scoring drive…Caught the pass from QB Philip Rivers in the right flat and juked past CB David Amerson to get enough yardage for the first down…vs. Denver (Oct. 22): Registered the first TD catch of his career, finishing the game with four catches for six yards (1.5 avg.) and the score…On the play, started in shotgun formation to the right of Philip Rivers before motioning left out of the backfield to catch a swing-pass in the left flat from Rivers for the one-yard score…Posted 38 rushing yards on seven carries (5.4 avg.)…Added a special teams tackle on kickoff coverage that forced Denver to start inside the 20…Contributed on punt coverage by downing a punt by P Drew Kaser at the Denver one-yard line in the third quarter…at New England (Oct. 29): Posted two rushes for eight yards (4.0 avg.) and hauled in a 13-yard catch…Returned two kickoffs for 36 yards (18.0 avg.)…Added a special teams tackle on punt coverage…at Jacksonville (Nov. 12): Led the team in rushing and receiving yards, posting his first game with more than 100 scrimmage yards (119)…Posted 42 rushing yards on 10 carries (4.2 avg.)…Finished with 77 receiving yards and two TDs on five catches (15.4 avg.), including a 28-yard TD catch at the end of the first half…On the play, caught a pass in the right flat and ran away from LB Telvin Smith before breaking a tackle by CB Jalen Ramsey and running down the sideline for the score…Added a 22-yard score after catching another pass in the right flat before turning up the sideline and diving across the goal line for the TD…Became the first RB to post two TD catches of 20-plus yards in the same game since Jamaal Charles (Dec. 15, 2013)…Led the team with three special teams tackles, all coming on punt coverage…vs. Buffalo (Nov. 19): Rushed for 40 yards and a TD on six attempts (6.7 avg.)…In the fourth quarter, took a handoff up the middle from QB Kellen Clemens and ran away from Bills defenders for a 21-yard TD after receiving blocks from G/T Michael Schofield, G Kenny Wiggins, TE Cumberland and WR Tyrell Williams…Added two catches for 18 yards (9.0 avg.)…at Dallas (Nov. 23): Rushed for 15 yards on six attempts (2.5 avg.) and posted three catches for 55 yards (18.3 avg.), including a 38-yard catch in the third quarter…On third-and-two, was split wide left and put a double-move on LB Justin Durant to get open down the left sideline for the 38-yard completion from Philip Rivers…vs. Cleveland (Dec. 3): Posted 19 rushing yards on four attempts (4.8 avg.) and 21 receiving yards on a pair of receptions (10.5 avg.)…vs. Washington (Dec. 10): Posted a 49 rushing yards on four carries (12.3 avg.)…Three special teams tackles came on kickoff coverage (one pinning the Redskins inside the 20) and two came on punt coverage (one pinned Washington inside their own 20)…On final play of the first half, took a handoff from Philip Rivers in the shotgun and ran through blocks from T Russell Okung, G Dan Feeney and TE Antonio Gates for a 33-yard gain, finishing just short of the end zone…at Kansas City (Dec. 16): Played 10 snaps on offense and six on special teams before leaving with a hand injury…Finished with a six-yard reception and 13 rushing yards on two attempts (6.5 avg.)…Ran for a 12-yard gain in the first quarter, taking an end-around handoff from Philip Rivers after a fake swing-pass to RB Melvin Gordon past a block from Dan Feeney…at New York Jets (Dec. 24): Limited to four special teams plays due to a hand injury suffered at Kansas City…vs. Oakland (Dec. 31): Still limited with a cast on his hand, appeared on six special teams snaps.
COLLEGE: Played four seasons (2013-16) at Western State Colorado in Gunnison, Colo., totaling 5,857 rushing yards and 55 rushing TDs on 932 attempts (6.3 avg.)…Broke almost every career rushing record in school history…Four-time first-team All-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference selection…Posted 1,000-plus rushing yards all four seasons (1,049 in 2013, 1,676 in 2014, 1,637 in 2015 and 1,495 in 2016)…Became the school’s career rushing yards leader as a junior…Candidate for the Harlon Hill Trophy in 2015, which is awarded to the top Division-II player…Set a career high with a 344-yard, five-TD performance at Western New Mexico in 2015…With 1,676 rushing yards as a sophomore in 2014, set the Mountaineers record for rushing yards in a single season.
PERSONAL: Given name Austin Ekeler…Last name is pronounced ECK-ler…Born in Lincoln, Neb. …Spent a month this offseason in Australia…Completed his collegiate degree in the spring of 2018, following his rookie campaign…Earned a degree in energy management from Western State Colorado…High School: Earned All-Conference and All-State honors in football and track & field at Eaton (Colo.) High…Finished his high school career with 2,398 rushing yards and 42 TDs for a 10.2 avg.
2017 Signed by Los Angeles Chargers as undrafted free agent, May 12.
