AJ Jackson

AJ Jackson's Biography

Alaric Jackson, a Canadian born on the 14th of July in 1998, is a professional football player hailed by the crowd for his impressive offensive tackle skills positioned with the Los Angeles Rams, a preeminent professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). A resident of Windsor, Ontario during his childhood, Jackson then relocated to Detroit, Michigan, which served as the backdrop of his burgeoning athletic career.

Jackson’s sports journey did not immediately propel him towards football. His initial athletic encounters involved basketball in his younger years at Renaissance High School. However, his junior year became a turning point when he dabbled in football. It turns out to be a game-changer, leading him to commit to the college football programs at Iowa – a decision made even more substantial given competing offers from Michigan State, Nebraska, and Iowa State.

Despite the excitement and anticipation for his true freshman season, Jackson ended up redshirting instead. From a seemingly slow start, he remarkably catapulted as a redshirt freshman when he started every regular season as a left offensive tackle for Iowa. His stellar performance earned him recognition – he was named to the All-Freshman team in the Big Ten Conference and was heralded as a freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America.

Although he encountered a few hurdles during his sophomore season – violating team rules led to his suspension and cost him the season opener – Jackson bounced back strongly by starting in the final 12 games of the season, which resulted in his naming as the All-Big Ten Second Team. His redshirt junior season was partially clouded by injuries resulting in him missing three matches. However, those challenges did not stop him from being named as the third team All-Big Ten.

As a resilient athlete, Jackson continued demonstrating his athletic prowess throughout his redshirt senior year, wherein he was named first-team All-Big Ten and a second-team All-American by the American Football Coaches Association, following his participation in all games in a season cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

His triumphant college career highlighted with significant accolades led Jackson to an agreement with the Los Angeles Rams. He signed as an undrafted free agent on May 3, 2021. His talent and hard work paved the way for him in making the Rams’ 53-man roster. His first taste of the NFL was on October 31, 2021, contributing nine snaps on offense in the last quarter of a significant victory against the Houston Texans. The pinnacle of the season was when he won Super Bowl LVI with the Rams glorious triumph over the Cincinnati Bengals.

Jackson started the 2022 season as a backup offensive lineman, but his adeptness led him to be named the starting right guard in the third week. In the wake of a series of injuries, he moved to left tackle for two games. Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with blood clots, effectively ending his season as he was placed in the injured reserve in November 2022.

He encountered some challenges again in 2024 as he incurred a suspension for the first two games due to a violation of the league’s personal conduct policy. Despite such hurdles, Alaric Jackson displays a promising career in the NFL, demonstrating athletic excellence, resilience, and the capacity to rise amid personal and team challenges, and remains an important part of the Los Angeles Rams line-up.