Michael L. Jameson, Jr (born July 14, 1979) is a former

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 ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

who played three seasons in 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 was drafted in the sixth round of the

2001 NFL Draft The 2001 NFL Draft was the 66th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible professional football players. The draft, which is officially referred to as the "NFL Player Selection Meeting," was held at the ...

by 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 ( ...

after playing

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 ...

for

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

College career

Jameson played collegiately for the

Texas A&M Aggies football The Texas A&M Aggies football program represents Texas A&M University in the sport of American football. The Aggies compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Western Divisio ...

team from 1997–2000. During his time with Texas A&M, he played all three positions in the secondary: cornerback,

free safety Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...

and

strong safety Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...

. He intercepted seven passes during his career, returning three for a

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 ...

. He also recorded 190

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position), a position in American football and Canadian football ** Dump tackle, a forceful move in rugby of picking u ...

. In 1999, as a junior, he was named second–team All–

Big 12 Conference The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its ...

Professional career

The

selected him in the sixth round of the

and on May 25, they signed him to a three–year contract. After being drafted by the Browns, Jameson said about his playing style, "I try to strike first, right at the point of attack. I like to try and use quickness, instincts and athletic ability to deliver the first blow." In the Browns' final preseason game against the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

, Jameson broke his leg. He was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

on August 28. The following season, during final cuts, he was waived from the team, only to be re-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. However, on October 10, he was signed to the active roster. He made his NFL debut on October 13 against 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 ...

, recording one tackle in the game. The following week, against the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

, he received more playing time than he had in his debut. He tallied five tackles and one sack in the game, earning a game ball for his performance. On November 3, he recorded a season–high six tackles against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

and on December 22, he intercepted his first pass in the NFL. After the season, he became an exclusive-rights free agent and eventually re-signed a $300,000 contract with Cleveland. During training camp, after

Robert Griffith Robert Otis "Griff" Griffith (born November 30, 1970) is a former American football strong safety in the National Football League. He played 13 seasons in the league, mostly for the Minnesota Vikings from 1994 to 2001. He also played three sea ...

broke his finger, Jameson was listed as one of the Browns' two starting safeties. However, Griffith returned before the season began. In 2003, Jameson played in 15 games for the Browns, recording 14 tackles. His season–high in tackles came in week 15 of the season against 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 ...

. Jameson, in 2004, played in all 16 games and recorded a career–high 17 tackles. In week 16, against

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

, he recorded four tackles, while the following week, against the Houston Texans, he tallied five tackles. Entering the 2005 season, he was the final member of the Browns' 2001 draft class that still remained on the roster. However, on September 3, he was suspended for four games for violating the league's substance–abuse policy. On October 14, after his suspension was lifted, he returned to practice with the Browns. The Browns terminated his contract on October 17.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jameson, Michael 1979 births Living people Players of American football from Killeen, Texas American football cornerbacks American football safeties Texas A&M Aggies football players Cleveland Browns players American sportspeople in doping cases