William Rodney Hudson (born July 12, 1989) is an American football center who is a free agent. He played college football at Florida State, and was a two-time All-American. He was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the second round of the 2011 NFL Draft. He also played for the Las Vegas Raiders and Arizona Cardinals.
Early years
Hudson was born in Mobile, Alabama. He attended B. C. Rain High School in Mobile, where he was a two-way lineman for the Raiders high school football team. He graded out at 95 percent for his entire senior season with a total of 47 pancake blocks, while also being a standout on defense as he recorded 55 tackles as defensive tackle. He earned All-State first team honors as a junior and senior.
Besides his football commitments, Hudson was forced to work nights at a local Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant to support his single mother throughout high school.
Considered a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, Hudson was listed as the No. 17 center in the nation. He also received a three-star rating by Scout.com, and ranked 45th on their offensive guard list. He selected Florida State over West Virginia and Southern Miss, among others.
College career
Hudson attended Florida State University, and played for coach Bobby Bowden and coach Jimbo Fisher's Florida State Seminoles football team from 2007 to 2010. As a true freshman in 2007, he started 10 of 13 games at left guard and left tackle. He was named the ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week for his performance in the Seminoles' victory over the second ranked Boston College. At the end of the season, he earned numerous honors such as a Freshman All-American first-team selection by College Football News and the Football Writers Association of America, and All-ACC third-team honors by Phil Steele. As a sophomore in 2008 Hudson earned ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week three times. At the end of the season, he earned a first-team All-ACC selection by Rivals.com and Phil Steele.
In 2009, Hudson was listed at No. 2 on Rivals.com's preseason interior lineman power ranking in 2009. Hudson was the winner of the ACC Jacobs Blocking Award as the league's most dominant offensive lineman. He earned FWAA first-team All-American honors and was an Associated Press second-team All-American.
In the 2010 preseason, Hudson was a watch list candidate for the Lombardi Award and Outland Trophy. In November 2010, he was named one of three finalists for the Outland Trophy, along with Gabe Carimi and Nate Solder; Carimi won the award. Hudson was a first-team All-ACC selection for the third consecutive season, and was recognized as a unanimous first-team All-American.
After four years of starting, Hudson left FSU as the most decorated offensive lineman in Seminole history. Hudson was listed as the 24th best player in FSU history by the Orlando Sentinel before his senior season had even been played.
Professional career
Hudson was graded as the sixth best available offensive guard in the 2011 NFL Draft and projected to be a second to third round pick by Sports Illustrated. He was projected to be moved to center, due to his "limited size". He was ranked as the best Center and the 52nd overall prospect by NFLDraftScout.com.
Kansas City Chiefs
2011
Hudson was drafted in the second round, with the 55th overall pick, by the Kansas City Chiefs. He was the highest selected Seminoles offensive lineman since Alex Barron went 19th overall to the St. Louis Rams in 2005. On July 29, 2011, the Kansas City Chiefs signed him to a four-year, $3.50 million contract with a signing bonus of $104,892.
He entered training camp his rookie year competing with veteran Casey Wiegmann for the starting center position. He was named the backup center to Wiegmann to begin the regular season.
He made his regular season debut in the Kansas City Chiefs' season-opening loss to the Buffalo Bills. On November 27, 2011, Hudson earned his first career start during a 13-9 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. He finished his rookie season with 16 games and one start as the Kansas City Chiefs finished 7–9 and fired head coach Todd Haley.
2012
Hudson entered training camp in 2012, competing with Rob Bruggeman and Cam Holland to be the Chiefs' starting center. Head coach Romeo Crennel named Hudson the starting center to begin the regular season. On September 23, 2012, Hudson suffered a broken leg during the Chiefs' 27–24 overtime victory against the New Orleans Saints. He was placed on injured-reserve for the remainder of the season three days later and finished his second season with three starts in the first three games.