Tom Jackson (American football, born 1951) facts for kids
Jackson at the 2010 NFL draft
|
|||||||
| No. 56, 57 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Linebacker | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born: | April 4, 1951 Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||
| Weight: | 220 lb (100 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school: | John Adams (Cleveland) | ||||||
| College: | Louisville | ||||||
| NFL Draft: | 1973 / Round: 4 / Pick: 88 | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
|
|||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||
|
|||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
|
|||||||
| Player stats at PFR | |||||||
Thomas Louie Jackson, known as "TJ" or "Tommy", is an American sports commentator and former professional football player. He played as a linebacker for the Denver Broncos in the National Football League (NFL) from 1973 to 1986. He was part of Denver's famous "Orange Crush Defense". Tom helped the Broncos reach the AFC Championship in 1977 and 1986. After his playing days, he became a successful NFL analyst for ESPN for 29 years. In 2015, he received the Pete Rozelle Award for his excellent work in broadcasting.
Contents
Playing Career: From High School to the NFL
Early Life and Sports
Tom Jackson went to John Adams High School. There, he played football, baseball, and was also a wrestler. He loved the Cleveland Browns and often went to games with his dad. Jackson said his wrestling coach helped him become mentally tough. He remembered his coach, John Bianchi, as a very strong person who pushed him to be better.
College Football Journey
Jackson hoped to play for Ohio State, but they weren't very interested in him because he was smaller. Instead, he was recruited by University of Louisville coach Lee Corso. Tom played football for Louisville for three seasons, from 1970 to 1972.
During his time in college, he was named the Missouri Valley Conference player of the year twice, in 1970 and 1972. As a linebacker, he led the Cardinals in tackles every year. His team had a great record of 23 wins, 7 losses, and 2 ties. In 1999, Louisville honored his jersey number 50.
Professional Career with the Broncos (1973–1986)
The Denver Broncos picked Tom Jackson in the fourth round of the 1973 NFL draft. He played for 14 years in Denver. During his career, he was chosen for the Pro Bowl three times and was named All-Pro four times. His teammates voted him Denver's Most Inspirational Player six times. He also helped the team reach two championship games, Super Bowl XII and Super Bowl XXI.
Jackson was one of only four players to play in both of these Super Bowls, which were nine years apart. When he retired, he had 20 career interceptions, which he returned for 340 total yards and three touchdowns. He also recovered eight fumbles for 104 yards. He recorded 13 sacks as a weak-side blitzer. Jackson is third on the Broncos' all-time list for games played, with 191. He also retired tied for the most interceptions by a linebacker for the team, with 20.
In 1992, Tom Jackson became the 14th person to be added to the Broncos' Ring of Fame. In 1987, Jackson published a book called Blitz: An Autobiography. It was about his time playing for the Broncos and was written with sports columnist Woody Paige.
Broadcasting Career (1987–2016; 2019-2020)
Joining ESPN and Popular Shows
Tom Jackson joined ESPN in 1987. He worked with Chris Berman on popular NFL shows like Sunday NFL Countdown and NFL Primetime. Sunday NFL Countdown is a weekly Sunday morning show that has won seven Sports Emmy awards. On Monday Night Countdown, Jackson hosted a segment called "Jacked Up!". This segment showed five big hits from the previous day's games.
Before joining ESPN, Jackson co-hosted "Broncos Beat" on KCNC-TV in Denver, Colorado. He also hosted a post-game show on KUSA-TV. He had a daily radio show called "Behind the Line" where he shared sports commentary.
In 1995, Jackson appeared in an episode of the TV show Sliders called "Eggheads." He played a sports commentator in the episode. In 2003, Jackson famously said that the New England Patriot players "hate their coach" Bill Belichick. However, Belichick and the team went on to win the next two Super Bowls.
During his time as a broadcaster, Tom Jackson was known for sharing his strong opinions on social issues. He also shared his deep knowledge of football.
Retirement and Return
Tom Jackson retired from ESPN after the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony on August 6, 2016. However, he reunited with Chris Berman for a special playoff edition of NFL Primetime on January 20, 2019.
On September 13, 2019, ESPN announced that Berman and Jackson would return for a new online version of NFL Primetime. This show streams weekly on ESPN+ during the NFL season. Jackson decided not to host Primetime for the 2020 season. This was due to concerns about the coronavirus pandemic.
Awards and Recognition
In July 2015, Tom Jackson received the prestigious Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award. This award is given by the Pro Football Hall of Fame for excellence in sports broadcasting.
Personal Life
Tom Jackson lives in Cincinnati, Ohio with his wife, Jennifer. Jennifer used to be a flight attendant, and they met in Hawaii at the 1990 Pro Bowl. They have two daughters named Taylor and Morgan. Tom also had a daughter, Andrea, who passed away in 1997.
