Jonathan Quinn "Jake" Ferguson[1] (born January 18, 1999) is an American professional football tight end for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Wisconsin and was drafted by the Cowboys in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL draft.

Jake Ferguson
refer to caption
Ferguson at Wisconsin in 2018
No. 87 – Dallas Cowboys
Position:Tight end
Personal information
Born: (1999-01-18) January 18, 1999 (age 25)
Rapid City, South Dakota, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:244 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school:Vel Phillips Memorial
(Madison, Wisconsin)
College:Wisconsin (2017–2021)
NFL draft:2022 / round: 4 / pick: 129
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 4, 2024
Receptions:106
Receiving yards:1,094
Receiving touchdowns:7
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

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Ferguson attended James Madison Memorial High School now known as Vel Phillips Memorial High School in Madison, Wisconsin. He played wide receiver and linebacker in high school. During his career he had 1,795 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns on offense and 314 tackles, five sacks and five interceptions on defense. He committed to the University of Wisconsin to play college football.[2][3]

College career

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Ferguson played at Wisconsin from 2017 to 2021.[4][5] After redshirting his first year in 2017, he played in 47 games over the next four years, recording 145 receptions for 1,618 yards and 13 touchdowns.[6] As a senior he broke Lee Evans' school record for consecutive games with a reception.[7]

College statistics

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Season Team GP Receiving
Rec Yds Avg Lng TD
2018 Wisconsin 13 36 456 12.7 36 4
2019 Wisconsin 14 33 407 12.3 28 2
2020 Wisconsin 7 30 305 10.2 34 4
2021 Wisconsin 13 46 450 9.8 35 3
Career 47 145 1,618 11.2 36 13

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 4+78 in
(1.95 m)
250 lb
(113 kg)
32+58 in
(0.83 m)
9+12 in
(0.24 m)
4.77 s 1.61 s 2.68 s 4.48 s 7.03 s 34.5 in
(0.88 m)
9 ft 10 in
(3.00 m)
15 reps
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[8][9]

Ferguson was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the fourth round, 129th overall, of the 2022 NFL draft.[10] In Week 6, he scored his first NFL touchdown on a seven-yard touchdown reception in the 26–17 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.[11] He finished his rookie season with 19 receptions for 174 yards and two receiving touchdowns in 16 games and eight starts.[12] In the 2023 season, he recorded 71 receptions for 761 yards and five touchdowns in 17 games and 16 starts.[13] In the Cowboys' Wild Card Round loss to the Packers, he had ten receptions for 93 yards and three touchdowns.[14]

NFL career statistics

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Legend
Bold Career high

Regular season

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Year Team Games Receiving Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng Y/G TD Fum Lost
2022 DAL 16 8 19 174 9.2 30 10.9 2 0 0
2023 DAL 17 16 71 761 10.7 40 44.8 5 0 0
2024 DAL 2 2 9 110 12.2 26 55.0 0 0 0
Career 35 26 99 1,045 10.7 40 36.9 7 0 0

Postseason

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Year Team Games Receiving Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng Y/G TD Fum Lost
2022 DAL 2 2 1 34 34.0 34 17.0 0 0 0
2023 DAL 1 1 10 93 9.3 22 93.0 3 0 0
Career 3 3 11 127 11.5 34 42.3 3 0 0

Personal life

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Ferguson's grandfather is former Wisconsin head coach Barry Alvarez; Alvarez was also an athletic director for the university.[15][16]

References

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  1. ^ Amaranthus, Bri (August 12, 2024). "Dallas Cowboys Jake Ferguson Reveals Real Name: Exclusive". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
  2. ^ Galloway, Jason (August 10, 2016). "Badgers football: Madison Memorial's Jake Ferguson commits to Wisconsin". wiscnews.com. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  3. ^ Galloway, Jason (April 1, 2016). "Badgers football: Madison Memorial's Jake Ferguson commits to Wisconsin". madison.com. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  4. ^ Potrykus, Jeff (September 28, 2021). "Wisconsin Badgers tight end Jake Ferguson hopes to spark offense". jsonline.com. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  5. ^ Bartholomew, Colton (November 27, 2021). "How Wisconsin tight end Jake Ferguson has increased his value to the team this season | College Football". madison.com. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  6. ^ "Jake Ferguson College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  7. ^ Adams, Jake (October 9, 2021). "Wisconsin TE Jake Ferguson sets school record for consecutive games with reception | College Football". madison.com. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  8. ^ "Jake Ferguson Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
  9. ^ "Jake Ferguson, Wisconsin, TE, 2022 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
  10. ^ Phillips, Rob (April 30, 2022). "4th-Round Pick Jake Ferguson Bolsters TE Depth". DallasCowboys.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  11. ^ "Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles - October 16th, 2022". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  12. ^ "Jake Ferguson 2022 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  13. ^ "Jake Ferguson 2023 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  14. ^ "Cowboys' Jake Ferguson: Three TDs in stunning playoff loss". CBSSports.com. January 15, 2024. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  15. ^ Megargee, Steve (August 25, 2021). "Ferguson continuing family tradition for No. 12 Wisconsin". AP News. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  16. ^ Landis, Bill (March 31, 2016). "Jake Ferguson, grandson of Barry Alvarez and 2017 ATH, commits to Wisconsin football". cleveland.com. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
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