A veteran NFL running back has retired from the league. On Thursday, the Detroit Lions announced that Justin Jackson has ended his football career at the age of 27. The announcement comes one day before the Lions play in their first preseason game of the year. Jackson re-signed with the Lions in July after spending the 2022 season with the team. Jackson was a free agent after the 2022 season and re-joined the team to compete for a reserve running back spot.
Jackson was selected in the seventh round by the Los Angeles Chargers in the 2018 NFL Draft. In his four seasons with the Chargers, Jackson rushed for 1,040 yards and four touchdowns in 43 games. In his one season with the Lions, Jackson rushed for 140 and one touchdown on 42 carries in 16 games.
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Last year, Jackson spoke to Sports Illustrated about growing as a player. “I think I’ve been getting better every day,” Jackson said. “That’s really just my focus. I’m not focused on anybody else but myself. My growth in this experience, and it’s been fun. It’s been really fun, so I think when you’re having a good time with something and you have a great vision and great goals. Then, it’s going to come to pass. So, just trying to let that flow. Obviously, the last game, I felt like I got my feet under myself a little bit better. Hopefully, we’ll continue that this next game and going on into the season.”
Jackson went on to tell the outlet about the difference between playing in Detroit and Los Angeles. “It’s not crazily different from the Chargers. Obviously, there is new nomenclature and stuff, and different things here and there. But, yeah, I think I’ve been able to kind of learn pretty easily, and I’m still learning,” Jackson explained. “Still trying to really dive in. You kind of get to the point where I know what I have to do, right.
Jackson played college football at Northwestern from 2014 to 2017. In his four seasons with the Wildcats, Jakcons rushed for 5,283 yards and 79 touchdowns. He became the ninth player in NCAA history to have four years with 1,000 rushing yards.
