William Jackson III (born October 27, 1992) 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 wi ...
cornerback
A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...
for the
Pittsburgh Steelers 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 for the
Houston Cougars and was drafted by the
Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the
2016 NFL Draft
The 2016 NFL Draft was the 81st annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015 NFL Draft, 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park (Chicago), ...
. Jackson has also played for the
Washington Football Team / Commanders.
High school career
Jackson was born on October 27, 1992, and grew up in the
Fifth Ward area of
Houston, Texas alongside a brother and three sisters. He attended and played football at
Wheatley High School in the city, where he was teammates with fellow NFL cornerback
Xavien Howard
Xavien Howard (born July 4, 1993) is an American football cornerback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Baylor and was drafted in the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Dolphins.
...
. Jackson was considered a three-star prospect by
Rivals.com
Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel.
History
Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...
. He accepted a scholarship to play college football at the
University of Houston
The University of Houston (UH) is a public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the university in Texas with over 47,000 students. Its campus, which is primarily in s ...
.
College career
Jackson attended
Trinity Valley Community College
Trinity Valley Community College (TVCC) is a public community college based in Athens, Texas. It has four campuses serving five counties across the southeast and eastern parts of the state.
About
TVCC operates four campuses serving the Texas co ...
for his freshman year before transferring to the
University of Houston
The University of Houston (UH) is a public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the university in Texas with over 47,000 students. Its campus, which is primarily in s ...
for his sophomore year. As a senior in 2015, he broke up 23 passes and had five interceptions.
Statistics
Professional career
With a deep cornerback class going into the combine, many analysts were more focused on
Vernon Hargreaves III
Vernon Hargreaves III (born June 3, 1995) is an American football cornerback who is currently a free agent. He played college football at Florida and was drafted 11th overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Early years
Hargre ...
,
Jalen Ramsey
Jalen Lattrel Ramsey (born October 24, 1994) is an American football cornerback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida State and was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars fifth over ...
, and
Mackensie Alexander
Mackensie Alexander (born November 12, 1993) is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played college football at Clemson, where after redshirting his freshman season, became a key role player on the Tigers' defense his second ...
, regarding them as the top players at their position and had Jackson as a second round selection. Jackson attended the NFL Combine but was unable to finish all the drills at the combine after suffering cramps. On March 31, 2016, Jackson attended Houston's Pro Day. He was projected to be an early round pick in the draft at the conclusion of the pre-draft.
Cincinnati Bengals
2016
The
Cincinnati Bengals selected Jackson in the first round (24th overall) of the
2016 NFL Draft
The 2016 NFL Draft was the 81st annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. As in 2015 NFL Draft, 2015, the draft took place at the Auditorium Theatre and Grant Park (Chicago), ...
. On June 10, 2016, Jackson signed his four-year, $9.07 million rookie contract with the team. Throughout training camp, Jackson competed to be the Bengals' third cornerback on the depth chart against
Darqueze Dennard
Darqueze Derrell Dennard (born October 10, 1991) is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played college football at Michigan State and was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft. Dennard ...
. During camp Jackson had suffered a torn pectoral muscle and would have to undergo surgery, leading him to miss his entire rookie season after he was placed on
injured reserve prior to Week 1.
2017
Returning fully healthy in 2017, he made his debut in the season-opener against 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 it ...
and made two solo tackles and a pass deflection in a loss. In Week 3 against the
Green Bay Packers, Jackson recorded four solo tackles, a pass deflection, and returned an interception off a pass by quarterback
Aaron Rodgers for a 75-yard touchdown. With the interception, he became just the second player in NFL history to return one thrown by Rodgers for a touchdown. In Week 7, Jackson earned his first career start after
Adam Jones was inactive due to a back injury. In Week 10, he recorded two solo tackles and made his first career sack during a 24–20 loss at 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 hom ...
. He was inactive for the Bengals' Week 11 victory at 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 headquar ...
due to a toe injury. Jackson became a starting cornerback again for the Bengals' in Week 14 after Jones was placed on injured reserve due to a
groin
In human anatomy, the groin (the adjective is ''inguinal'', as in inguinal canal) is the junctional area (also known as the inguinal region) between the abdomen and the thigh on either side of the pubic bone. This is also known as the medial comp ...
injury. In Week 15, he collected a season-high five combined tackles during a 34–7 loss at the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...
. Jackson finished the
2017 season with 27 tackles, 14 pass deflections, a sack, an interception, and a touchdown.
2018
Throughout training camp, Jackson competed against Darqueze Dennard to be a starting cornerback. Head coach Marvin Lewis named Jackson and Dre Kirkpatrick the starting cornerbacks to begin the regular season.
2019
![William Jackson III covering Odell Beckham 2019](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/William_Jackson_III_covering_Odell_Beckham_2019.jpg)
In April 2019, the Bengals picked up the fifth-year option on Jackson's contract. In Week 2 against the
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
, Jackson recorded his first interception of the season off
Jimmy Garoppolo
James Richard Garoppolo (born November 2, 1991), nicknamed Jimmy G, is an American football quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Eastern Illinois, where he set the school r ...
in the 41-17 loss. He was placed on injured reserve due to a shoulder injury in December 2019. He finished the season with 37 tackles, three passes defensed, and an interception.
2020
Jackson recorded an interception off a pass thrown by
Baker Mayfield in Week 2 against 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 (A ...
.
Washington Football Team / Commanders
2021
Jackson signed a three-year, $40.5 million contract with the
Washington Commanders
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) E ...
(still known as the Washington Football Team at the time) on March 19, 2021. He recorded his first interception with Washington in the season opener against
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 ...
quarterback
Justin Herbert. In the Week 10 win over 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) South division. The cl ...
, Jackson recorded his second interception of the season off a pass thrown by
Tom Brady
Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He spent his first 20 seasons with the New England Patriots organization, with which ...
after safety
Kamren Curl
Kamren Curl (born March 3, 1999) is an American football strong safety for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Arkansas and was drafted by Washington in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL ...
popped the ball loose from Buccaneers receiver
Jaelon Darden
Jaelon Darden (born January 14, 1999) is an American football wide receiver for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at North Texas. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the fourth r ...
. Jackson missed the final two games of the
2021 season due to a calf injury then being placed on the
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...
reserve list on January 5, 2022.
2022
In Week 5 of the 2022 season, Jackson was benched in the first quarter against 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 hom ...
. Jackson stated he left the game due to a
bulging disc in his back, but head coach
Ron Rivera
Ronald Eugene Rivera (born January 7, 1962), nicknamed "Riverboat Ron", is an American football head coach for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He attended the University of California, Berkeley in the early 198 ...
stated "We just decided to make a change" when asked by media to confirm Jackson's claim. Jackson was reported to request a trade from the team on October 13, 2022. The Commanders made Jackson inactive for the next three games.
Pittsburgh Steelers
On November 1, 2022, Jackson was traded to the
Pittsburgh Steelers along with a conditional 2025 seventh-round pick for a conditional 2025 sixth-round pick. He was placed on injured reserve on November 12.
NFL career statistics
References
External links
*
Pittsburgh Steelers bioHouston Cougars bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, William, III
Living people
1992 births
Players of American football from Houston
American football cornerbacks
Trinity Valley Cardinals football players
Houston Cougars football players
Cincinnati Bengals players
Washington Commanders players
Washington Football Team players
Pittsburgh Steelers players
African-American players of American football
21st-century African-American sportspeople