A strange thing happened after Calvin Jackson Jr. dedicated his final season in Washington State to the memory of his father.
Calvin Jackson Sr., a former defensive back for the Miami Dolphins, died suddenly at age 48 of an undisclosed illness on March 15, 2021. And in his son’s final season, Jackson avoided injury for the first time. for years, reached all levels. a career-high 66 catches for 987 yards and seven touchdowns, and landed on the NFL’s radar, eventually signing an undrafted free agent contract with the Jets in May.
“After the last game, I sat on the court and was like, ‘Dang, this really happened because of him,'” Jackson told The Post. “Going into games knowing he was watching and I have his support always uplifted me and made me want to play even harder.”
It seemed like Jackson Sr.’s guidance to a familiar destination was just beginning. The Dolphins — who remained the family’s favorite team after Jackson Sr.’s career ended in 1999 — held a private practice for the young Jackson ahead of the April draft and invited him to rookie minicamp to a try after he was not selected.
Jackson was practicing for his one-shot when an AFC East rival interfered. The Jets also invited Jackson to try out — their minicamp had been held a weekend earlier — and signed him to a contract before he could leave the building.
“When the Dolphins first called, I was like, ‘That’s probably meant to be,'” Jackson said. “It’s where my dad played and it would have been nice to be near my home, but I’m happy to be here. I will take advantage of a great opportunity.
So far, so good. The 5-foot-9, 193-pound slot receiver rotated with the second-team offense during OTAs and caught punts with a broom waving his face to create a distraction at rookie minicamp.
“Not getting a call on draft day kinda let me down,” Jackson said, “but I used it as fuel for the fire.”
Jackson moved in with his father at age 12 and the years that followed were a football education.
A picture of Peyton Manning, Jackson’s eldest platform rookie — the first of 303 sacks in the Hall of Fame quarterback’s career — hung in the living room. His dad latched onto the footballs from his five interceptions, and Jackson can visualize the framing of his first NFL touchdown. They reflected together to list the objectives of the season at each training camp.
Father and son also watched old game tapes together — many Jets-Dolphins battles included — and “Pops” liked to joke, “If I was in my prime, I’d lock you in face-to-face.”
“He was a fan, but he was also my biggest hater,” Jackson said. “He used to talk to me before and after every game to make sure I had my head straight. If I had a decent match, he would say, ‘Yeah, you did well, but you didn’t do this or that.’ He said, “You are so far from that goal. Now you have to do this to get there. The support he had for me paid off. I cherish those moments when I look back.
When Jackson joined the Jets, he found an unlikely connection with special teams coordinator Brant Boyer, who was in the same Dolphins rookie class as Jackson’s father in 1994.
“I’ll tell you what: when you’re old is when you played with his dad,” Boyer joked. “He’s a hell of a kid, and he’s done a really good job. His dad worked hard and was a great teammate.
The Jacksons play in different positions…on different sides of the ball…but they share two important skills: speed in and out of breaks and something more difficult to quantify.
“We’re playing bigger than we are,” Jackson said. “I’m not the biggest, I’m not the fastest, but any 50/50 ball, I believe in myself that I’m going to go up and get it no matter who’s on me because I’m playing bigger than me, just like my father. I play with a lot of heart, and I think he does too.
His dad went from undrafted to a 57-game starter. The Jets hope to have discovered the same hidden gem.
“I’m going to make sure I stay in the playbook and do everything perfectly for the T on special teams,” Jackson said. “I feel like I’m doing a good job right now, but I have to step it up next week [team minicamp] and training camp. I will lower my head and go after. »
Jackson last heard his father’s voice two days before tragedy struck. They exchanged texts a day later and it took a while to come to terms with the reality. He never got to ask if it would be okay to cross rivalry lines, but he already knows the answer.
“I know he’s grinning from ear to ear right now,” Jackson said, “and joking with his boys about it.”