Jordan Akins

Jordan Akins
refer to caption
Akins with the Browns in 2023
No. 88 – Cleveland Browns
Position:Tight end
Personal information
Born: (1992-04-19) April 19, 1992 (age 32)
Locust Grove, Georgia, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school:McDonough (GA) Union Grove
College:UCF (2014–2017)
NFL draft:2018 / round: 3 / pick: 98
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
  • AAC Fifth Anniversary Team (2018)[1]
  • First-team All-AAC (2017)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 5, 2024
Receptions:178
Receiving yards:1,985
Receiving touchdowns:9
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Jordan Nikemian Akins (born April 19, 1992) is an American professional football tight end for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at UCF.

Early life

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Akins graduated from Union Grove High School in McDonough, Georgia.[2] He earned All-State honors as both a junior and senior, as well as All-Conference as a sophomore.[3] He committed and signed to play football for the UCF Knights, choosing the Knights over schools such as LSU and Georgia.[4] However, after being drafted by the Texas Rangers in the third round of the 2010 MLB Draft, he chose to pursue a baseball career instead of attending UCF and signed with the Rangers. Akins struggled in the minor leagues, hitting .218 over four seasons and never rising above high-A ball. He retired from baseball after the 2013 season and returned to play football at UCF.[5]

College career

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As a true freshman in 2014, Akins played in all 13 of UCF's games, catching 12 passes for 135 yards along with returning 15 kickoffs for 363 yards.[6]

Akins started the 2015 as a starter, but suffered a season-ending injury in UCF's third game against Furman.[7] He elected to take a medical redshirt.

As a redshirt sophomore in 2016, Akins once again played in all 13 of UCF's games, tallying 23 receptions for 347 yards and two touchdowns.[8]

Prior to the 2017 season, Akins was named to the John Mackey Award watch list.[9] He played in 12 of UCF's 13 games, catching 32 passes for 515 yards and four touchdowns.[10] After the season, Akins declared for the 2018 NFL draft.[11]

College statistics

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Year School Conf Class Pos G Rec Yds Avg TD
2014 UCF American FR WR 10 12 135 11.3 0
2015 UCF American SO WR 3 14 152 10.9 2
2016 UCF American SO TE 10 23 347 15.1 2
2017 UCF American SR TE 11 32 515 16.1 4
Career UCF 81 1,149 14.2 8

Professional career

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Pre-draft

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On January 3, 2018, Akins announced his decision to forgo his remaining eligibility and enter the 2018 NFL draft.[12] On January 13, 2018, it was announced that Akins had accepted an invitation to play in the 2018 Senior Bowl.[13] On January 27, 2018, Akins played in the 2018 Reese's Senior Bowl and caught two passes for 31 yards as part of Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien's South team that defeated Denver Broncos head coach Vance Joseph's North team 45–16.[14] Akins sustained a hamstring injury ten days before the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis and was unable to perform any drills and chose to skip the bench press. He attended private workouts and meetings with the Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers, and New Orleans Saints.[15] At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Akins was projected to be a sixth round pick or priority undrafted free agent by NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked as the eighth best tight end prospect in the draft by Scouts Inc. and was ranked the 16th best tight end by DraftScout.com.[16][17]

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 3 in
(1.91 m) 		249 lb
(113 kg) 		33+1⁄2 in
(0.85 m) 		9+1⁄4 in
(0.23 m)		 4.38 s 7.29 s 35 in
(0.89 m)		 10 ft 2 in
(3.10 m)		 24 reps
All values from NFL Combine/UCF's Pro Day[18][19]

Houston Texans (first stint)

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Akins with the Houston Texans in 2018

The Houston Texans selected Akins in the third round (98th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft.[20] Akins was the fifth tight end drafted in 2018.[21] He became the highest drafted tight end in UCF's history.[22][23] On May 10, 2018, the Texans signed Akins to a four-year, $3.32 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $761,520.[24] In the season opener against the New England Patriots, Akins had two receptions for 11 yards in his NFL debut.[25] He played in 16 games with six starts, recording 17 receptions for 225 yards.[26]

In Week 3 of the 2019 season against the Chargers, Akins caught three passes for 73 yards and two touchdowns in the 27–20 win.[27] Overall, Akins finished the 2019 season with 36 receptions for 418 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns.[28]

In Week 1 of the 2020 season against the Chiefs, Akins recorded two receptions for 39 yards and a touchdown in the 34–20 loss.[29]

New York Giants

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On April 22, 2022, the New York Giants signed Akins to a one-year contract.[30] On August 24, 2022, Akins was released.[31]

Houston Texans (second stint)

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On August 31, 2022, Akins was signed to the Texans practice squad.[32] He was promoted to the active roster on October 12.[33]

Cleveland Browns

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On March 18, 2023, Akins signed a two-year contract with the Cleveland Browns.[34]

NFL career statistics

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Regular season

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Year Team Games Receiving Rushing Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Att Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2018 HOU 16 6 17 225 13.2 28 0 — — — — — 0 0
2019 HOU 16 9 36 418 11.6 53 2 — — — — — 0 0
2020 HOU 13 5 37 403 10.9 26 1 1 4 4.0 4 0 0 0
2021 HOU 13 3 24 214 8.9 31 0 1 3 3.0 3 0 2 2
2022 HOU 15 3 37 495 13.4 46 5 — — — — — 1 1
Career 73 26 151 1755 11.6 53 8 2 7 3.5 4 0 3 3

Postseason

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Year Team Games Receiving Rushing Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Att Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2018 HOU 1 0 2 8 4.0 7 0 — — — — — 0 0
Career 1 0 2 8 4.0 7 0 — — — — — 0 0

References

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  1. ^ "American Announces Fifth Anniversary Football Team". American Athletic Conference. July 23, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  2. ^ Calhoun, Jimmy (November 11, 2016). "From Diamond to Gridiron, UCF Football Star a Man of Many Talents". Knight News. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
  3. ^ "Jordan Akins - 2017 - Football". UCF Athletics. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  4. ^ Bass, Ryan (February 3, 2010). "George O'Leary, UCF Knights Ink Solid 2010 Signing Class". Bleacher Report. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  5. ^ Hankerson, Jazmyne (September 3, 2014). "UCF football player comes back from the big leagues". USA Today. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  6. ^ "Jordan Akins 2014 Player Statistics". cfbstats.com. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  7. ^ "UCF wide receiver Jordan Akins out for season". Central Florida Future. Archived from the original on July 26, 2016. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  8. ^ "Jordan Akins 2016 Player Statistics". cfbstats.com. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  9. ^ "College football: 2017 John Mackey Award watch list". NCAA.com. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  10. ^ "Jordan Akins 2017 Player Statistics". cfbstats.com. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  11. ^ "UCF football's Tre'Quan Smith and Jordan Akins declare for NFL draft". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  12. ^ "UCF TE Jordan Akins declares for NFL Draft". Rotoworld.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  13. ^ Green, Shannon (January 13, 2018). "Former UCF tight end Jordan Akins invited to Senior Bowl". orlandosentinel.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  14. ^ "UCF stars Shaquem Griffin, Jordan Akins, Tre'Quan Smith shine in Senior Bowl spotlight". orlandosentinel.com. January 27, 2018. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  15. ^ Murphy, Brian (April 1, 2018). "8 Things Learned During UCF Football's Pro Day". blackandgoldbanneret.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  16. ^ "*Jordan Akins, DS #16 TE, Central Florida". DraftScout.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  17. ^ "NFL Jordan Akins -ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.[dead link]
  18. ^ "Jordan Akins Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". National Football League. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  19. ^ "Jordan Akins College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
  20. ^ "2018 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  21. ^ Kollmann, Brett (April 27, 2018). "Houston Texans Select Jordan Akins With 98th Overall Pick". BattleRedBlog.com. Retrieved June 10, 2018.
  22. ^ Beede, Jason (April 27, 2018). "Houston Texans select Jordan Akins 98th overall". 247sports.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  23. ^ "Central Florida Drafted Players/Alumni". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  24. ^ "Spotrac.com: Jordan Akins contract". Spotrac.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  25. ^ "Texans' Jordan Akins: Targeted twice in opener". CBSSports.com. September 10, 2018. Retrieved October 31, 2024.
  26. ^ "Jordan Akins 2018 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  27. ^ "Watson, Watt lead way as Texans outlast Chargers, 27–20". ESPN. Associated Press. September 22, 2019. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  28. ^ "Jordan Akins 2019 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  29. ^ "Houston Texans at Kansas City Chiefs – September 10th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
  30. ^ Salomone, Dan (April 22, 2021). "Giants sign former Texans TE Jordan Akins". Giants.com. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
  31. ^ Eisen, Michael (August 24, 2022). "Collin Johnson to IR with Achilles; Giants claim 3 off waivers". Giants.com. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
  32. ^ "Houston Texans Transactions (8-31-2022)". HoustonTexans.com. August 31, 2022. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
  33. ^ "Houston Texans Transactions (10-12-2022)". HoustonTexans.com. October 12, 2022. Retrieved July 1, 2024.
  34. ^ Poisal, Anthony (March 18, 2023). "Browns sign TE Jordan Akins". ClevelandBrowns.com. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
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