Brad Jones (American football)

Bradley Edward Jones (born April 1, 1986) is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the seventh round of the 2009 NFL Draft, and played college football at Colorado. With the Packers, he was part of their Super Bowl XLV team that beat the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Early years

Jones played football for East Lansing High School from 2000-2003. As a senior captain and team MVP, Jones was a First-team All-State selection and All-state Dream Team performer by the Detroit Free Press, when the Lansing State Journal also named him the Defensive Player of the Year. During his senior and junior years he earned First-team All-Conference (Capitol Area Athletic Conference), All-area and All-area Dream Team honors by the Lansing State Journal. The Detroit Free Press made him an All-State special mention honoree his junior year, as he also earned a spot on the First-team All-conference when he was a sophomore.

As a senior, he recorded 117 total tackles (79 solo), 18 tackles for loss, 11 sacks, two fumble recoveries (including one for a 70-yard touchdown), five forced fumbles, four interceptions (with one going for a 30-yard touchdown), 15 quarterback hurries and six pass deflections. On offense, where he also started at tight end, he reeled in 27 passes and five touchdowns for 501 yards. As a junior and dual starter once again, he compiled 110 total tackles (62 solo), 11 stuffs for loss, five sacks, four fumble recoveries, two forced fumbles, two interceptions, five quarterback pressures, three pass breakups and one blocked field goal. He also caught 12 balls and one touchdown totaling 280 yards. During his sophomore season, he finished with 99 total stops (42 solo), six tackles for loss, two sacks, one recovered fumble, one interception, three quarterback hurries and one pass deflection, while also netting one reception for 30 yards. East Lansing was the 9-2 conference champs his senior year, 6-4 his junior season and 13-1 his sophomore year, losing in the second round of the state playoffs.

In addition to football, he lettered four years in track & field, where he competed in the 200-meter dash (21.7 career-best) and the 110m hurdles (14.32 career-best), earning All-area and All-regional runner-up honors as a junior. He also played basketball as a freshman and sophomore.

College career

In 2008 Jones started all 12 games at outside linebacker, earning honorable mention All-Big 12; He was CU’s co-defensive player of the year, as selected by the coaches (Dave Jones Award). He racked up 78 tackles, of which 48 were solo and 14 for losses, including seven sacks. He also led the team in quarterback hurries with 14 and also forced two fumbles, had a pass breakup and three chasedowns (near sacks). In 2007 he started all 13 games including the Independence Bowl at the “sam” outside linebacker position, and posted 72 tackles on the year (45 solo), with six for losses including a pair of quarterback sacks. He also had nine third down stops, seven hurries, five tackles for zero and three passes broken up. In 2006 he played in all 12 games, starting 11 and he finished third on the team in tackles with 72 (41 solo). Though he had a season-low two stops at Kansas, he did make his first career interception against the Jayhawks. He had six third down stops on the season, and he was credited with half a quarterback sack against Iowa State, the first of his career. He also had two hurries and a pass broken up. In 2005 he played in all 13 games, including the Champs Sports Bowl (no starts), making 20 tackles on the year, including 16 solo and one for a loss, to go with two third down stops, a quarterback hurry and pass broken up. In 2004 he redshirted.

Professional career

Green Bay Packers

He was drafted by the Packers in the seventh round of the 2009 NFL Draft, and was forced into a starting role during the 2009 season after a season-ending injury to Linebacker/Defensive End Aaron Kampman. Although taken in a lower round and didn't have many of the qualities expected for an NFL linebacker, Jones surprised many with a high degree of productive quality, producing four sacks and holding his own for the remainder of the season. His work ethic and moral standards are also thought very highly of with the Packers' coaching staff.

Jones became the permanent starting outside linebacker when Aaron Kampman signed on with the Jacksonville Jaguars during the 2010 offseason. He remained the starter at outside right linebacker before he suffered a shoulder injury in a game against division rival Minnesota Vikings. He was placed on injured reserve three days later.

In the January 1, 2012, regular season finale versus the Detroit Lions, Jones restrained a 15-year-old boy who had run onto the field.^[1]

Following the 2011-2012 season, the Packers moved Jones to inside linebacker, where he earned a roster spot as mainly a special teams player. Following season ending injuries to Desmond Bishop and D.J. Smith, Jones started every game from week 6 on, including the playoffs, he went on to have his best season as a pro, recording 77 tackles, 2 sacks, 4 passes defensed and one forced fumble. After The 2012-2013, The Packers re-signed Jones, and released Desmond Bishop, which put Jones and AJ Hawk atop the depth-chart for the Packers at middle linebacker for the 2013-2014 season. On February 20, 2015, he was released by the Packers.

Philadelphia Eagles

On March 2, 2015, Jones signed a two-year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles.^[2] On November 11, 2015, Jones was cut from his contract with the Eagles.

Career statistics

Source:^[3]

Personal life

Jones is a member of Omega Psi Phi fraternity.

References

External links

• Philadelphia Eagles bio
• Green Bay Packers bio
• Colorado Buffaloes bio

• Career statistics and player information from NFL.com • ESPN • CBS Sports • Yahoo! Sports • Pro-Football-Reference