Chris Jackson signs with Green Bay Packers
Published on September 10, 2003 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Los Angeles Avengers News Release
LOS ANGELES -- Chris Jackson, the all-time leading receiver for the Los Angeles Avengers and the Arena Football League's reigning "Offensive Player of the Year" signed a free agent contract with the Green Bay Packers on Wednesday.
Jackson will be on the Packers' 53-man active roster for this Sunday's home game versus the Detroit Lions and has been issued jersey No. 81.
Green Bay also signed another wide receiver, Antonio Freeman, the fifth-ranking receiver in Packer history, in response to three receivers (Donald Driver, Robert Ferguson and Karsten Bailey) suffering injuries in Sunday's opening day loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
This is Jackson's second tour of duty with Green Bay. He was signed as a free agent on Aug. 1, 2002, and spent the preseason with the Packers before being waived Sept. 1, in the team's final roster reduction for the regular season. Jackson later signed Sept. 28, and saw action in a 17-14 win over the Carolina Panthers at Lambeau Field.
"I have always believed that Chris has the ability to play in the NFL," Avenger head coach Ed Hodgkiss said. "It was no surprise to me that when the Packers had receivers go down, that he was one of the first guys they turned to since he has been with them before and is familiar with their system.
"It is always bittersweet to see one of your players go to the NFL, but we definitely wish him the best of luck," Hodgkiss added. "Over the past two years I have developed a great relationship with Chris and probably was as excited for him as he was for himself."
Jackson, 28, spent the 2003 NFL preseason with the Miami Dolphins. He caught three passes for 27 yards during the exhibition season before being waived on Aug. 27.
His NFL career began on April 28, 1998, when the Seattle Seahawks signed him to a free agent contract. Jackson spent the majority of the 1998 and 1999 seasons on the Seahawk and Tampa Bay Buccaneer practice squads. After being waived by Seattle, he signed with the Tennessee Titans on Oct. 4, 2000, and played in a 9-7 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, before suffering a back injury and being placed on injured reserve list on Dec. 1. Jackson subsequently was released March 1, 2001, and had not been on an NFL roster until being signed by Green Bay for the first time Aug. 1, 2002.
During the Avengers' 2003 season, Jackson rewrote the team record book with 117 receptions for 1,737 yards and 46 touchdowns. He also threw three touchdown passes and scored a total of 280 points. In addition, his touchdown catches tied an AFL single-season record, which he now shares with Mike Horacek (Iowa Barnstormers, 2000) and Mike Furrey (New York Dragons, 2003), who currently plays for the St. Louis Rams.
In his fourth season with the club, Jackson led the Avengers to a franchise-best 11-5 regular-season record in 2003, and their second consecutive playoff appearance, which was cut short by a 70-63 quarterfinal loss to the Arizona Rattlers. In that contest, he had 11 receptions for 181 yards and four touchdowns.
The only Avenger player who has remained with the franchise for all four of its seasons, Jackson burst upon the scene by winning the AFL's "Rookie of the Year" award following the inaugural 2000 campaign. In 49 career games with the Avengers, he has racked up 355 receptions for 4,992 yards and 113 touchdowns, and scored at least six points in all but one contest.
Jackson played college football at Washington State University (Pullman, Wash.). In 1997, he set a single-season Cougar record with 11 touchdown receptions and finished as the fourth-leading receiver in the Pacific-10 Conference (54 receptions for 1,005 yards).
Incredibly, his first year of playing organized football was in 1994 at Orange Coast College (Costa Mesa, Calif.), where he averaged 21.1 yards per catch. Prior to that, he was a noted basketball player, having had a standout career on the hardwood at Mater Dei High School, in Santa Ana, Calif.
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