Cal Sports Report

Ex-Cal Star DeSean Jackson Announces Retirement from NFL

Jackson still holds several punt-return records for the Golden Bears and was named to the NFL Pro Bowl three times

Jake Curtis

Ex-Cal Star DeSean Jackson Announces Retirement from NFL
Ex-Cal Star DeSean Jackson Announces Retirement from NFL /

Former Cal standout wide receiver DeSean Jackson officially announced his retirement from pro football on Wednesday after 15 seasons in the NFL.

Jackson, who turns 37 on Friday, last played in an NFL game last season, when he caught one pass for the Baltimore Ravens in a 16-13 loss to Pittsburgh on January 1, 2023. 

He was named to the Pro Bowl three times and led the NFL in yards per reception four times. He also returned four punts for touchdowns in his pro career.

Jackson will be recognized as an honorary captain during Sunday's game against the San Francisco 49ers.

Jackson played three seasons at Cal (2005 through 2007) and still holds the Cal records for career punt returns for touchdowns (6), single-season punt returns for touchdowns (4), career punt return average (16.7 yards) and single-season punt return average (18.2 yards).

Jackson had 162 receptions for 2,423 yards and 22 receiving touchdowns in his Cal career.  He ranks fifth on Cal's alltime list in career receiving yards, and fifth in receiving touchdowns.  His nine 100-yard receiving games are the third-most alltime at Cal.

He also ran the ball 24 times for 199 yards and a touchdown in his career, and returned a Cal-record six punts for touchdowns while average a school-record 16.7 yards per punt return.

His best season for the Bears was 2006, when he caught 59 passes for 1,060 yards and nine touchdowns, and also returned 25 punts, averaging single-season school-record 18.2 yards per return. He scored a Cal-record four touchdowns on punt returns that season. His 1,060 receiving yards are the seventh-best single-season total in Cal history.

He was a second-round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles in the 2008 NFL draft.


Jackson was named to the Pro Bowl in 2009, 2010 and 2013. He had over 1,000 receiving yards in five of his seasons, and led the NFL in yards per reception in 2010 (22.5), 2014 (20.9), 2016 (17.9) and 2018 (18.9).

He played his first six season with the Eagles, then spent three seasons with Washington, two with Tampa Bay, followed by two more seasons back in Philadelphia. Jackson split the 2021 season between the Raiders and the Rams, and played seven games for the Ravens in 2022, catching nine passes for 153 yards.

He finished with 641 receptions, playing one game for each, then played 15 games last season for 11,263 yards, an average of 17.6 yards per reception and 58 touchdown catches.

Jackson also had four punt returns for touchdowns during his career, including two in 2009, when he averaged a league-leading 15.2 yards per punt return.

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Cover photo of DeSean Jackson by Trevor Ruszkowski, USA TODAY Sports

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Jake Curtis
JAKE CURTIS

Jake Curtis worked in the San Francisco Chronicle sports department for 27 years, covering virtually every sport, including numerous Final Fours, several college football national championship games, an NBA Finals, world championship boxing matches and a World Cup. He was a Cal beat writer for many of those years, and won awards for his feature stories.

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