Christian Jones (American football)

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Christian Jones
refer to caption
Jones with the Chicago Bears in 2014
Personal information
Born: (1991-02-18) February 18, 1991 (age 33)
Orlando, Florida, U.S.
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school:Lake Howell
(Winter Park, Florida)
College:Florida State
Position:Linebacker
Undrafted:2014
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Pass deflections:
16
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Christian Jones (born February 18, 1991) is an

undrafted free agent in 2014. He played college football at Florida State, and played for the Detroit Lions
from 2018 to 2020.

Early years

Jones attended Lake Howell High School in Winter Park, Florida. He recorded 326 tackles during his career. A five-star recruit, he was ranked as the second best outside linebacker in the country by Rivals.com.[1]

College career

As a true freshman in 2010, Jones played in all 14 games, recording 18 tackles and three

2013 NFL Draft, but decided against it.[2] As a senior in 2013, he was suspended one game for violation of team rules.[3]
He recorded 56 tackles with 7.5 tackles for a loss, one interception and two sacks.

Professional career

Jones attended the

Indianapolis, Indiana and completed all of the combine and positional drills. On May 5, 2014, it was reported that Jones and his Florida State teammates Timmy Jernigan, and Telvin Smith had all failed drug tests at the NFL Combine.[4] On March 18, 2014, Jones participated at Florida State's pro day and ran positional drills for scouts and team representatives. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Jones was projected to be a second or third round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked as the ninth best outside linebacker prospect in the draft by DraftScout.com.[5]

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split
20-yard shuttle
Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 3+18 in
(1.91 m)
240 lb
(109 kg)
33+12 in
(0.85 m)
9+58 in
(0.24 m)
4.74 s 1.68 s 2.76 s 4.38 s 7.03 s 33+12 in
(0.85 m)
9 ft 7 in
(2.92 m)
17 reps
All values from
NFL Combine[6]

Chicago Bears

On May 10, 2014, the Chicago Bears signed Jones to a three-year, $1.57 million undrafted free agent contract that includes a signing bonus of $5,000.[7][8][9] Jones' fall in the draft was widely attributed to his failed drug test at the NFL combine. He also received an offer from the Jacksonville Jaguars, but chose the Bears partly due to the linebackers coach Reggie Herring.[10]

2014

Throughout training camp, Jones competed for a roster spot at linebacker against

Dede Lattimore, and Jerry Franklin.[11] Head coach Marc Trestman named Jones the backup strongside linebacker to start the regular season, behind Shea McClellin.[12][13]

He made his professional regular season debut in the

Detroit Lions in Week 16. He finished his rookie season with 69 combined tackles (42 solo), two sacks, and a pass deflection in 16 games and five starts.[16] On December 29, 2014, it was announced that the Chicago Bears fired general manager Phil Emery and head coach Marc Trestman after the Bears finished with a 5–11 record.[17]

2015

Jones was moved to inside linebacker after the Bears' new defensive coordinator,

3-4 defense and held an open competition to name new starting inside linebackers.[18] Jones competed for the job against Jon Bostic, Shea McClellin, and Mason Foster.[19] Head coach John Fox named Jones and Shea McClellin the starting inside linebackers to begin the 2015 regular season, along with outside linebackers Lamarr Houston and Pernell McPhee.[20]

In Week 6, Jones collected a season-high nine combined tackles and deflected a pass during a 37–34 loss at the

Minnesota Vikings. He was benched due to his poor play in the last three games, but was reinserted in the starting lineup the next week after Shea McClellin was inactive after sustaining a concussion.[21] He finished the 2015 season with 86 combined tackles (62 solo) and four pass deflections in 15 games and 13 starts.[16] Pro Football Focus gave Jones an overall grade of 65.2, which ranked him 38th among all qualifying linebackers in 2015.[22]

2016

On June 16, 2016, it was announced that Jones would be making the move to outside linebacker after the Bears drafted

Houston Texans and recorded a season-high four combined tackles in their 23–14 loss. He started two games after Leonard Floyd sustained an ankle injury in Week 4.[25] He finished the 2016 season with a total of 15 combined tackles (nine solo) and a pass deflection in 16 games and two starts.[16]

2017

On March 11, 2017, the Chicago Bears signed Jones to a one-year, $1.50 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $500,000.[7][26]

Throughout training camp, Jones competed for a role as a backup inside linebacker against Nick Kwiatkoski.[27] Head coach John Fox named him a backup inside linebacker behind Jerrell Freeman, Danny Trevathan, and primary backup Nick Kwiatkoski.

On September 28, 2017, Jones earned his first start of the season after Jerrell Freeman tore his pectoral muscle in the season-opener and Nick Kwiatkoski sustained a chest injury in Week 2. He recorded five combined tackles in the Bears' 35–14 loss at the

San Francisco 49ers in Week 13. He finished the 2017 season with 90 combined tackles (60 solo), two pass deflections, and two sacks in 16 games and 11 starts.[16] He received the 64th highest grade among the 87 linebackers that qualified in 2017.[28]

Detroit Lions

Jones in a game against the Washington Redskins

On March 15, 2018, the Detroit Lions signed Jones to a two-year, $6.35 million contract that includes $2.80 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $1.75 million.[7][29][30] He started all 16 games for the Lions in 2018, finishing fourth on the team with 69 tackles, along with a sack, three passes defensed, and a forced fumble.

On November 2, 2019, Jones signed a two-year contract extension with the Lions through the 2021 season.[31] He started 13 games in 2019 before being placed on injured reserve on December 21, 2019. He finished the season with 51 tackles, two sacks, and four passes defensed.

Jones was released after the 2020 season on March 8, 2021.[32]

Chicago Bears (second stint)

Jones signed a one-year contract with the Chicago Bears on March 23, 2021.[33]

Seattle Seahawks

On September 14, 2022, Jones signed with the practice squad of the Seattle Seahawks.[34] He was released on October 25.

Personal life

His father, Willie Jones also played at Florida State and played for the Oakland Raiders of the National Football League. His mother, Tarralyn Jones, is the CEO of TJ's Designs & Events, motivational speaker, and published author of "Living A Masked Life" .[35]

References

  1. ^ Rivals.com
  2. ^ Christian Jones to Return to FSU for Senior Year
  3. ^ Florida State suspends starting linebacker Christian Jones for Bethune-Cookman game
  4. ^ Visser, David (May 5, 2014). "Timmy Jernigan, Telvin Smith, & Christian Jones Failed Combine Drug Test". chopchat.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  5. ^ "Christian Jones, DS #9 OLB, Florida State". draftscout.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  6. ^ "NFL Draft Profile: Christian Jones". NFL.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  7. ^ a b c "Spotrac.com: Christian Jones contract". spotrac.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  8. ^ "Undrafted free agents 2014: Chicago Bears to sign Christian Jones". fansided.com. May 11, 2014. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  9. ^ "OverTheCap.com: Christian Jones contract". overthecap.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  10. ^ Mayer, Larry (May 18, 2014). "Christian Jones fueled by draft snub". chicagobears.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  11. ^ Dickerson, Jeff (August 11, 2014). "Khaseem Greene no longer overthinking it". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  12. ^ "Ourlads.com: Chicago Bears Depth Chart: 10/01/2014". Ourlads.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  13. ^ Campbell, Rich (August 30, 2014). "Bears set 53-man roster". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  14. ^ "NFL Game Center: Week 2-2014: Chicago Bears @ San Francisco 49ers". NFL.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  15. ^ Wiederer, Dan (October 24, 2014). "Huddle up: rookie Christian Jones' upside to be tested". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  16. ^ a b c d "NFL Player stats: Christian Jones (career)". NFL.com. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  17. ^ "Bears fire Marc Trestman and Phil Emery". chicagotribune.com. December 29, 2014. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  18. ^ Dickerson, Jeff (December 9, 2015). "Christian Jones highlights Chicago Bears' undrafted free agents". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  19. ^ "Bears linebacker Christian Jones bulks up for next big step". chicago.suntimes.com. June 2, 2015. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  20. ^ "Ourlads.com: Chicago Bears Depth Chart: 10/01/2015". Ourlads.com. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  21. ^ "Bears vs Buccaneers: Alshon Jeffery, Shea McClellin inactive; Christian Jones starts". chatsports.com. December 27, 2015. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  22. ^ Perez, Bryan (May 23, 2016). "Bears' linebackers among best tacklers in NFL, according to Pro Football Focus". bearswire.usatoday.com. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  23. ^ "Christian moved to OLB-What it means". beargoggleson.com. June 16, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  24. ^ "Christian Jones fitting at new position on Bears' defense". bearswire.usatoday.com. August 6, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  25. ^ Patrick Finley (October 9, 2016). "Bears first-rounder Leonard Floyd won't play vs. Colts". chicagosuntimes.com. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
  26. ^ "Bears re-sign linebacker Christian Jones". Bears Wire. March 11, 2017. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  27. ^ Greenberg, Daniel (August 11, 2017). "Previewing the Chicago Bears inside linebackers for 2017". dawindycity.com. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  28. ^ "Lions planning to sign LB Christian Jones to two-year deal". nfltraderumors.co. March 13, 2018. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  29. ^ "Lions sign UFA LBs Christian Jones and Devon Kennard". DetroitLions.com. March 15, 2018. Archived from the original on March 15, 2018. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
  30. ^ Alper, Josh (March 13, 2018). "Lions set to add Christian Jones to linebacking corps". ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com.
  31. ^ "Detroit Lions sign Christian Jones to two-year contract extension". Detroit Free Press. November 2, 2019.
  32. ^ "Lions announce roster moves". DetroitLions.com. March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  33. ^ Mayer, Larry (March 23, 2021). "Roster Move: Bears bringing back LB Jones". ChicagoBears.com. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
  34. ^ Boyle, John (September 14, 2022). "Seahawks Sign LB Tanner Muse To 53-Man Roster, Add LB Christian Jones To Practice Squad". Seahawks.com.
  35. ^ Bobby Bowden kept up with the Joneses

External links