Joseph Edwin Jones (born February 21, 1994) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

for the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). 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 ...

at Northwestern.

Early years

Jones began playing football in the eighth grade at the insistence of his mother. He attended Plano High School, where he was an All-conference

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 ...

as a senior. He played with a broken bone in his right hand, collecting 710 rushing yards, 8 rushing

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

s, 11 receptions for 328 yards and 5

s in eight games. He also practiced

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

, winning a state championship in the

110 metres hurdles The 110 metres hurdles, or 110-metre hurdles, is a hurdling track and field event for men. It is included in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympic Games. The female counterpart is the 100 metres hurdles. As part of a racing event, ten hur ...

as a senior.

College career

Jones accepted a football scholarship from

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

. He was converted into a

as a freshman and had only 6 tackles after his first 2 seasons, playing almost exclusively on

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

. As a junior, he appeared in 13 games, making 18 tackles (14 solo) and one sack. He became a starter at

as a fifth year senior, playing most of the season with a broken right thumb and his hand and wrist in a cast. He appeared in 13 games (5 starts), while posting 43 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 passes defensed, 3.5 tackles for loss and one fumble recovery. He finished his college career after appearing in 37 games (5 starts), recording 70 tackles (44 solo), 3 sacks, 2 passes defensed and one fumble recovery.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Jones was signed as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

by the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

after the

2017 NFL Draft The 2017 NFL Draft was the 82nd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. It was held in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art on April 27–29, returning to Philadelphia f ...

on May 12, because his pro day workout would have placed him near the top of the

s participating at the

NFL Scouting Combine The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Footb ...

. He was waived on September 2.

Los Angeles Chargers

On September 4, 2017, Jones was signed to the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division, and ...

' practice squad, but was released two days later.

Seattle Seahawks

On September 19, 2017, Jones was signed to the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

' practice squad.

Denver Broncos

On November 7, 2017, Jones was signed by the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

off the Seahawks' practice squad to replace

Kevin Snyder. He appeared in 7 games, playing mainly on

. Jones re-signed with the Broncos on a one-year contract on March 27, 2020.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On May 5, 2021, Jones signed with the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

. He was waived on August 31, 2021.

Tennessee Titans

On September 13, 2021, Jones was signed to the

' practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on October 8, 2021. He was waived on January 4, 2022 and re-signed to the practice squad. After the Titans were eliminated in the Divisional Round of the 2021 playoffs, he signed a reserve/future contract on January 24, 2022. On August 30, 2022, Jones was waived by the Titans and signed to the practice squad the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on September 12, 2022. On October 24, 2023, Jones was signed to the Tennessee Titans practice squad.

Personal life

Jones married in college and became a father to a daughter in 2016 and again in 2018. He had three part-time jobs during the offseason, two as an exercise trainer and occasionally delivering flowers.

References

External links

*
Tennessee Titans bioNorthwestern Wildcats bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Joseph 1994 births Living people People from Plano, Illinois Sportspeople from Kendall County, Illinois Players of American football from Illinois American football linebackers Dallas Cowboys players Los Angeles Chargers players Seattle Seahawks players Denver Broncos players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Tennessee Titans players Northwestern Wildcats football players