Chris Jennings (born December 12, 1985) is a former

gridiron football Gridiron football,"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Ret ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

and

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

at Fairview High School in

Ashland, Kentucky Ashland is a home rule-class city in Boyd County, Kentucky, United States. The largest city in Boyd County, Ashland is located upon a southern bank of the Ohio River at the state border with Ohio and near West Virginia. The population was 21,6 ...

. He was a member of the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

Hartford Colonials The Hartford Colonials, originally the New York Sentinels, were a professional American football team that played in the United Football League in its 2009 and 2010 seasons. A charter member of the UFL, the Sentinels began play in 2009 nominally ...

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the Canadian F ...

and the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...

Professional career

Montreal Alouettes

After going undrafted in the

2008 NFL Draft The 2008 NFL Draft was the 73rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 26 and April 27, ...

, Jennings drew interest from the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...

and worked out for the

however, the Browns were not in a position to sign Jennings at the time. Instead, Jennings signed with the

of the

CFL The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

on June 15, 2008. Jennings was placed on the team's practice squad.

Cleveland Browns

Jennings was signed by the Browns on August 18, 2009. In three preseason games, Jennings ran for 63 yards on 18 carries while catching 7 passes for 69 yards. He was waived by the Browns on September 5 but re-signed to their practice squad two days later. Jennings was promoted to the active roster on October 3 after the team placed James Davis on the injured reserve list. He made his NFL debut October 4, 2009 for the Browns against the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...

running for 8 yards on 1 carry. Jennings was primarily used in a reserved role however, he started his first game against Cincinnati on November 29. On December 10, Jennings became the first Browns rookie running back to score a rushing touchdown since Lee Suggs in 2003. It was also the first rushing touchdown by a Browns running back that season. Jennings finished the season having rushed for 220 yards and a touchdown while catching 9 passes for 56 yards. Jennings was re-signed by the Browns on March 17, 2010, and figured to have a role in the Browns' offense following his positive performance in his rookie season however, he was waived on September 4 as part of the final roster cuts. The Browns decided not to re-sign Jennings, who threatened to seek out other opportunities, despite injuries that plagued running back

Peyton Hillis Peyton Derek Hillis (born January 21, 1986) is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL). Hillis attended Conway High School in Conway, Arkansas and was a highly touted recruit. Hillis attended the ...

Hartford Colonials

Jennings signed with the

of the UFL on October 21, 2010. Jennings carried the ball only 12 times for 6 yards in his tenure with the Colonials however he was an important contributor to their special teams unit.

New York Jets

Jennings was signed to a future contract by the

on January 5, 2011. During the Jets' second game of the 2011 preseason he had four carries for 81 yards. He ran 69 yards on one run, which was the longest run from the line of scrimmage by a Jet in the preseason since

Curtis Martin Curtis James Martin Jr. (born May 1, 1973) is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons, primarily with the New York Jets. He spent his first three seasons with the New England Patrio ...

ran 80 yards in 1999. He was waived on September 3.

Montreal Alouettes (II)

Jennings returned to the CFL in the second half of the

2012 CFL season The 2012 CFL season was the 59th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it was the 55th season for the Canadian Football League. The pre-season began on June 13, 2012, and the regular season started on June 29, 2012. Rogers Centre ...

after being released by the New York Jets. He played in 7 of the 18 regular season games that year, compiling 318 yards on the ground and 163 through the air. He received 8 rushing attempts in the first 3 games of the

2013 CFL season The 2013 CFL season was the 60th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it was the 56th season of the Canadian Football League. The pre-season began on June 12, 2013 and the regular season began on June 27, 2013. Regina, Saskatchewa ...

before being released by the Alouettes on July 15, 2013.

Toronto Argonauts

The

of the CFL, signed Jennings on September 25, 2013. He was released by the Argonauts on October 22, 2013.

Personal life

Jennings resides in Chandler, AZ .

Legal

Jennings allegedly assaulted a doorman on April 17, 2010 at a dance club. The following month, Jennings was not charged with assault as the doorman did not sign the complaint. Jennings was arrested in

Guernsey County, Ohio Guernsey County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 38,438. Its county seat is Cambridge, and it is named for the Isle of Guernsey in the English Channel, from which many of the county's earl ...

, on September 5, 2011, for driving 147 MPH, in a 65 MPH zone.

References

External links

Arizona Wildcats bioCleveland Browns bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jennings, Chris 1985 births Living people Sportspeople from Ashland, Kentucky Players of American football from West Virginia American players of Canadian football Canadian football running backs American football running backs Arizona Western Matadors football players Arizona Wildcats football players Montreal Alouettes players Cleveland Browns players New York Jets players People from Yuma, Arizona