Darius Jennings
Darius Lamar Jennings (born June 28, 1992) is a former American football wide receiver and return specialist.
He played college football at Virginia and was signed by the Cleveland Browns as an undrafted free agent. Jennings was also a member of the Chicago Bears, New York Jets, Tennessee Titans, Los Angeles Chargers, and Detroit Lions.
 Jennings with the Tennessee Titans in 2018 | |||||||||
| No. 10, 15 | |||||||||
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| Position: | Wide receiver, return specialist | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | June 28, 1992 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 180 lb (82 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Gilman School (Baltimore, Maryland) | ||||||||
| College: | Virginia | ||||||||
| Undrafted: | 2015 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Player stats at NFL.com · PFR | |||||||||
Early years
Darius Lamar Jennings was born to Lawrence and Dana Jennings on June 28, 1992, in Baltimore, Maryland. He attended and played high school football at The Gilman School while also lettering in basketball and track.
College career
Jennings finished his collegiate career with 133 receptions for 1,667 yards and 11 touchdowns in 49 games and 28 starts. He ranked #1 all-time in kick return yards with 1,839.
Jennings majored in sociology.
College statistics
| Virginia Cavaliers | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | School | Conf | Class | Pos | G | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | |||||
| 2011 | Virginia | ACC | FR | WR | 13 | 20 | 238 | 11.9 | 1 | |||||
| 2012 | Virginia | ACC | SO | WR | 12 | 48 | 568 | 11.8 | 5 | |||||
| 2013 | Virginia | ACC | JR | WR | 12 | 38 | 340 | 8.9 | 3 | |||||
| 2014 | Virginia | ACC | SR | WR | 12 | 27 | 521 | 19.3 | 2 | |||||
| Career | 133 | 1,667 | 12.5 | 11 | ||||||||||
Professional career
Cleveland Browns
2015 season
_(cropped).jpg)
Jennings signed with the Cleveland Browns as an undrafted free agent in May 2015. He started the season on the practice squad and was promoted to the active roster in early December. Jennings was waived by the Browns on December 16, 2015, but was re-signed on December 22.
Jennings finished his rookie season with 14 receptions for 117 yards to go along with seven returns for 158 yards in four games and one start.
2016 season
On April 4, 2016, the Browns re-signed Jennings. On September 3, 2016, he was released. The next day, Jennings was signed to the Browns' practice squad. He was released again on October 6, 2016.
Chicago Bears
On October 10, 2016, Jennings was signed to the Chicago Bears' practice squad. He was released by the Bears on November 22, 2016.
New York Jets
On December 6, 2016, Jennings was signed to the New York Jets' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Jets on January 2, 2017. On April 26, 2017, Jennings was waived by the Jets.
Tennessee Titans
2017 season
On May 19, 2017, Jennings signed with the Tennessee Titans. He was waived on September 2, 2017, and was signed to the Titans' practice squad the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on September 23, 2017. He was waived on November 25, 2017, and was re-signed back to the practice squad.
2018 season
Jennings signed a reserve/future contract with the Titans on January 15, 2018.
During the season-opening 27-20 road loss to the Miami Dolphins, Jennings scored his first NFL touchdown after returning a 94-yard kickoff return in the fourth quarter. During a Week 9 28-14 road victory over the Dallas Cowboys, Jennings had a 36-yard reception despite three defenders around him in the second quarter to go along with 23 return yards. In the next game against the New England Patriots, Jennings returned the opening kickoff for 58 yards and recorded a 21-yard pass completion to quarterback Marcus Mariota, the first of his career as the Titans won 34–10.
Jennings finished the 2018 season with 22 returns for 698 yards and a touchdown to go along with 11 receptions for 101 yards and a two-yard rush in 16 games and no starts. His 31.7 yards set a franchise record for average kickoff returns that also led the NFL.
2019 season
Jennings was released by the Titans on October 31, 2019. Prior to his release, Jennings caught two passes for 17 yards and returned seven kicks for 147 yards. He was re-signed on December 23, 2019. In the regular-season finale against the Houston Texans, Jennings returned two kicks for 49 yards.
In the postseason, Jennings returned three kicks for 60 yards before the Titans lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game by a score of 35-24.
Los Angeles Chargers
On March 30, 2020, Jennings was signed by the Los Angeles Chargers. He was released on September 5, 2020.
Detroit Lions
On August 9, 2021, Jennings signed with the Detroit Lions. He was released on August 23, 2021.
NFL statistics
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career-high |
Regular season
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | Rushing | Returning | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | ||
| 2015 | CLE | 4 | 1 | 14 | 117 | 8.4 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 158 | 22.6 | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2018 | TEN | 16 | 0 | 11 | 101 | 9.2 | 36 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 698 | 31.7 | 94T | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | TEN | 8 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 8.5 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 196 | 21.8 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 27 | 1 | 27 | 235 | 8.7 | 36 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 | 38 | 1,052 | 27.7 | 94T | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
Postseason
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | Rushing | Returning | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | ||
| 2019 | TEN | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 60 | 20.0 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 60 | 20.0 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Personal life
During the 2018 offseason, Jennings took part in the NFLPA’s Externship Program with Events DC and Under Armour. He helps out with "Next One Up," an organization helping inner-city high school athletes in Baltimore. Jannings also worked as a camp counselor at his alma mater, The Gilman (Md.) School, helping middle schoolers with classwork and activities. He has two brothers, Dimitrius Jones Jr. and Deon Jennings.
References
- Virginia Cavaliers bio Archived February 7, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
Media related to Darius Jennings at Wiki Commons
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