Darius Jackson (born December 1, 1993) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, Cleveland Browns,

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, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Las Vegas Raiders, and

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. He played

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at Eastern Michigan University. Jackson was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the sixth round of the

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Early life

Jackson attended Sparta High School in Sparta, Illinois. He was a two-way

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as a senior, registering almost 1,100 rushing yards, while playing quarterback, running back and safety. He received All-conference honors on both sides of the ball and was an Academic All-state selection. He also practiced baseball.

College career

He accepted a football scholarship from Eastern Michigan University. As a sophomore, he appeared in seven games (one start) and had 201 rushing yards. The next year, he appeared in all 12 games (4 starts), posting 295 rushing yards. As a senior, he became a full-time starter and had a break out year, rushing for 1,078 yards on 208 carries (5.2 avg.), 14 rushing touchdowns, 21 receptions for 201 yards, two receiving touchdowns and 16 total touchdowns (school record).

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys (first stint)

Jackson was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the sixth round (216th overall) of the

, in part because of the athletic traits he displayed during his pro day. He made the Cowboys 53-man roster, in order to protect his rights from being claimed by another team and was declared inactive in 14 games. On December 13, he was waived to make room for running back Darren McFadden, who was being activated from the non football injury list.

Cleveland Browns

On December 14,

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

, Jackson was claimed off waivers by the Cleveland Browns. He was declared inactive for the remaining three games. On June 1,

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

, Jackson was waived/injured with an undisclosed knee injury that forced him to miss organized team activities. He cleared waivers and was placed on the injured reserve list on June 2. On May 3,

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

, Jackson was waived by the Browns.

Dallas Cowboys (second stint)

On May 30,

, Jackson signed with the Cowboys. On September 1, 2018, he was waived by the Cowboys and was signed to the

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

the next day.

Green Bay Packers

On September 3, 2018, Jackson was signed by the

from the Cowboys' practice squad, as the team was looking for a third running back, with Aaron Jones suspended for the first two games, and

Devante Mays Devante Roshard Mays (born May 26, 1994) is an American football running back who is currently a free agent. He played college football at Utah State and Blinn College. Early years Mays was born to Mark and Elwanda Mays in Livingston, Texas and ...

being released with an injury settlement. He was waived on October 6, 2018.

Dallas Cowboys (third stint)

On October 9, 2018, Jackson was signed to the Cowboys practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on December 22, 2018. Overall, in the 2018 season, he had six carries for 16 yards, all of which came in the regular season finale against the

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

. On August 30, 2019, Jackson was released by the Cowboys, then re-signed to the practice squad on September 11. He was released on September 16.

Indianapolis Colts (first stint)

On September 20, 2019, Jackson was signed to the

practice squad, but was released four days later.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On October 9, 2019, Jackson was signed to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers practice squad. He was released on October 15.

Indianapolis Colts (second stint)

On November 12, 2019, Jackson was signed to the Colts practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Colts on December 30, 2019. On August 2, 2020, Jackson was waived by the Colts. He was re-signed to the practice squad on September 16, 2020. He was released on November 3, and re-signed to the practice squad three days later. He was released on November 7 and re-signed three days later to the practice squad. He was released on December 1, 2020.

Las Vegas Raiders

On July 29, 2021, Jackson signed with the Las Vegas Raiders. He was waived on August 2.

Houston Texans

On August 11, 2021, Jackson signed with the

. He was waived on August 23. He was re-signed to the practice squad on November 30, 2021. He was released on January 5, 2022.

References

External links

Eastern Michigan Eagles bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Darius 1993 births Living people People from Sparta, Illinois Players of American football from Illinois American football running backs Eastern Michigan Eagles football players Dallas Cowboys players Cleveland Browns players Green Bay Packers players Indianapolis Colts players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Las Vegas Raiders players Houston Texans players