Quick Facts
Biography
William Jackson III is an American football cornerback for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Bengals in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Houston.
High school career
Jackson is a native of the Fifth Ward area of Houston. Jackson attended Wheatley High School in Houston, Texas, where he was teammates with Xavien Howard.
He was considered three-star prospect by Rivals.com. He accepted a scholarship to play college football at the University of Houston.
College career
Jackson attended Trinity Valley Community College for his freshman year, before enrolling at the University of Houston for his sophomore year. As a senior, he broke up 23 passes and had 5 interceptions.
College statistics
| Defense | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | GP | Tackles | For Loss | Passes Def | Int | FF |
| 2015 | Houston | 12 | 43 | 1.5 | 23 | 5 | 0 |
| College Totals | 12 | 43 | 1.5 | 23 | 5 | 0 | |
Professional career
With a deep cornerback class going into the combine, many analysts were more focused on Vernon Hargreaves III, Jalen Ramsey, and Mackensie Alexander, regarding them as the top players at their position and had Jackson as a second round selection. Jackson was able to excel with an amazing performance at the combine and had his draft stock rise, while also being discussed as one of the top cornerbacks. Many analysts had Jackson projected to be drafted in either the first or early second round. Unfortunately, he was unable to finish all the drills at the combine after suffering cramps but was able to make them up at Houston's Pro Day. 31 teams were represented at Houston's Pro Day, while Jackson, Kenneth Farrow, Demarcus Ayers, and 13 other teammates were in attendance to workout. The majority of analysts had Jackson projected to be drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers after general manager Kevin Colbert and head coach Mike Tomlin attended his workout in person. His combination of size, speed, and athlectism were the main factors of being graded so highly.
| Ht | Wt | Arm length | Hand size | 40-yd dash | 10-yd split | 20-yd split | 20-ss | 3-cone | Vert | Broad | BP | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 0½ in | 189 lb | 31¾ in | 9¼ in | 4.37 s | 1.56 s | 2.52 s | 4.32 s | 6.86 s | 9 ft 8 in | 10 reps | |||||||||
| All values from NFL Combine and Houston Cougars pro day. | |||||||||||||||||||
Jackson was drafted as the 24th overall pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2016 NFL Draft.
On June 10, 2016, the Bengals signed Jackson to a four-year, $9.07 million rookie contract with $8.71 million guaranteed.
On September 4, 2016, Jackson was placed on injured reserve with a torn pectoral.
Personal life
Jackson was raised by his mother, Vanessa Hailey, and grew up in Houston's Fifth Ward. He has four siblings, three sisters and one brother.