Former Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Jordan Evans, who played 65 career games in five years for his lone professional team, announced his retirement from football Sunday afternoon via X/Twitter.
🖤🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/SVcEYX9I4d
— Jordan Evans (@jordanevans_50) April 21, 2024
Evans was a sixth round pick made by the Bengals in the 2017 NFL Draft. He made the Week 1 roster every year he was with the team because of his value as a reserve linebacker, and his ability to play special teams.
Evans ended up with 1,005 career snaps on defense, and 1,159 on special teams. The only unit he wasn’t a part of was field goal kicking.
Per Pro Football Focus, Evans was one of the Bengals’ eight highest-graded special teams players in three of his five years. He recorded 15 tackles on special teams alone, and his 77.6 grade in 2020 was second on the team only behind Cethan Carter.
Upon earning trust in this department, Evans was re-signed by the Bengals in 2021 for one more year. Not many late Day 3 draft picks see a second contract of any kind, but Evans proved his worth.
The Bengals opted not to retain Evans in 2022, and the rest of the NFL didn’t have much use for him either. He emerged in the XFL in 2023 as a member of the Seattle Sea Dragons, and was then drafted by the DC Defenders earlier this year for the start of the newly former UFL. The Defenders waived Evans a month ago on March 21.
