Malachi Jones (gridiron football) facts for kids

Malachi Fitzgerald Jones, born on March 22, 1994, is a former American professional football player. He was a wide receiver, which is a player who catches passes from the quarterback. Malachi played college football at Appalachian State University.

Early Life and High School Football

Malachi Jones grew up in Lawrenceville, Georgia. He went to Central Gwinnett High School there. During his senior year in 2011, he was a star player. He led his county with 82 catches, gaining 1,059 yards and scoring 14 touchdowns. He even broke school and county records for catches and receiving yards in a single game.

After high school, Malachi decided to play college football at Appalachian State University. He chose Appalachian State over other schools like Chattanooga and Georgia Southern.

College Football Career

Malachi Jones played for the Appalachian State Mountaineers for four seasons. He played in every single game during his college career, starting 35 of them as a wide receiver.

During his time at Appalachian State, he caught a total of 124 passes. These catches gained him 1,711 yards and resulted in eight touchdowns. In 2012, his first year, he was recognized as a Freshman All-American. He was also named to the Southern Conference’s All-Freshman team.

College Statistics Overview

Here's a quick look at Malachi's performance in college:

Professional Football Journey

After college, Malachi Jones began his professional football career. He played for several teams in different leagues.

Starting with the NFL

In 2016, Malachi signed a contract with the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). This was right after the 2016 NFL draft. However, he was released by the team a couple of days later. In 2018, he also had a short time with the Chicago Bears.

Playing in Arena Football

Malachi found a lot of success in arena football leagues. These leagues play indoors on a smaller field.

High Country Grizzlies

In 2017, Malachi joined the High Country Grizzlies in the National Arena League (NAL). He had a great season, catching 66 passes for 685 yards and scoring 16 touchdowns. Because of his excellent performance, he was named the 2017 National Arena League Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Albany Empire Success

Malachi then moved to the Albany Empire in the Arena Football League (AFL) in 2018. He quickly became a star player. In his first season, he had 77 catches for 1,156 yards and scored 29 touchdowns. He also scored 5 touchdowns by running with the ball. He scored at least one touchdown in every game he played that season.

He won two big awards in 2018: the Arena Football League Rookie of the Year Award and Wide Receiver of the Year. He was the only rookie in the league's history to win both awards in the same year. He was also named to the First-team All-Arena.

After the Alliance of American Football (AAF) league stopped playing, Malachi returned to the Albany Empire in 2019. He continued his amazing performance, catching 96 passes for 1,440 yards and 25 touchdowns. He was the only receiver in the AFL to gain over 1,000 yards that year. His incredible season helped the Empire win the ArenaBowl XXXII championship!

Other Leagues

Malachi also played for the Atlanta Legends in the Alliance of American Football (AAF) in 2019. He caught 22 passes for 312 yards and 2 touchdowns in 8 games.

In 2019, he signed a two-year contract with the Montreal Alouettes in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He later retired from the team in 2021 to take a job offer outside of football.

He returned to arena football for short stints with the relaunched Albany Empire in 2021 and the Carolina Cobras in 2022.

Career Statistics Highlights

Here are some of Malachi Jones's career statistics from different leagues:

National Arena League (NAL) Stats

Arena Football League (AFL) Stats

Regular Season

Playoffs

Alliance of American Football (AAF) Stats

Malachi's Family and Football Connections

Malachi comes from a family with a strong background in sports.

• His father, Andre Jones, was also a professional football player. He played as a defensive end for the 1988 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He also played for the Detroit Lions and in the Canadian Football League.
• His older brother, T. J. Jones, played college football at Notre Dame and was drafted by the Detroit Lions in 2014.
• His younger brother, Jahmai Jones, is a professional baseball player. He was drafted by the Angels in 2015 and has played for the Los Angeles Angels in Major League Baseball (MLB).
• Malachi's godfather is Raghib "Rocket" Ismail, a famous football player who played for Notre Dame and had a successful career in the NFL.