Jeff Janis
American football player (born 1991)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jeffrey Ronald Janis (born June 24, 1991) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Saginaw Valley State Cardinals and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the seventh round of the 2014 NFL draft. Janis was also a member of the Cleveland Browns.
Tawas City, Michigan, U.S.
Janis with the Green Bay Packers in 2014 | |||||||||||
| No. 83 | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Wide receiver | ||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||
| Born | June 24, 1991 Tawas City, Michigan, U.S. | ||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||
| Listed weight | 219 lb (99 kg) | ||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||
| High school | Tawas Area (Tawas City) | ||||||||||
| College | Saginaw Valley State (2009–2013) | ||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2014: 7th round, 236th overall pick | ||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||
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Early life
A native of Tawas City, Michigan, Janis attended Tawas Area High School.[1] He was a member of both the football and basketball teams, and was an all-conference wide receiver who also played as a running back following an injury, and ended up leading his team in rushing.[2]
College career
Janis attended Saginaw Valley State University from 2009 to 2013, where he played for the Cardinals.[3][4] After redshirting in 2009, Janis caught nine passes for 130 yards and a touchdown in 2010. In 2011, he appeared in all 11 games, starting eight and posted a team-high 968 receiving yards on 48 receptions (20.2 avg.) and 14 touchdowns. In 2012, Janis started all 11 games and was second in the nation with 106 receptions and led all DII players with 1,635 receiving yards, both of which set new SVSU single season marks. He caught 17 touchdown passes and was named a first-team All-GLIAC selection. In 2013, Janis caught 83 passes for 1,572 yards and 14 touchdowns, earning first-team All-GLIAC honors and was a first-team AFCA Div. II All-American.[5]
For his collegiate career, Janis finished second in the history of the GLIAC with 4,305 receiving yards.[6]
Janis was invited to play in the 2014 Senior Bowl.[7]
College statistics
| Saginaw Valley State Cardinals | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | GP | Receiving | Rushing | Kick Returns | ||||||||||||
| Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 2010 | 10 | 9 | 130 | 14.4 | 28 | 1 | 3 | 16 | 5.3 | 15 | 0 | 2 | 40 | 20.0 | 20 | 0 |
| 2011 | 11 | 48 | 968 | 20.2 | 76 | 14 | 2 | 17 | 8.5 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2012 | 11 | 106 | 1,635 | 15.4 | 73 | 17 | 1 | 15 | 15.0 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | 12 | 83 | 1,572 | 18.9 | 95 | 14 | 4 | 49 | 12.3 | 25 | 2 | 5 | 71 | 14.2 | 27 | 0 |
| Total Archived August 19, 2016, at the Wayback Machine | 44 | 246 | 4,305 | 17.5 | 95 | 46 | 10 | 97 | 9.7 | 25 | 3 | 7 | 111 | 15.9 | 27 | 0 |
Professional career
| 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 | Wonderlic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 2+7⁄8 in (1.90 m) | 219 lb (99 kg) | 32+1⁄2 in (0.83 m) | 9 in (0.23 m) | 4.42 s | 1.55 s | 2.60 s | 3.98 s | 6.64 s | 37.5 in (0.95 m) | 10 ft 3 in (3.12 m) | 20 reps | 30[8] |
| All values are from NFL Combine[9][10] | ||||||||||||
Green Bay Packers
Janis was selected in the seventh round (236th overall) by the Green Bay Packers in the 2014 NFL draft.[11][12][13] He was the first Saginaw Valley State Cardinal drafted since offensive guard Todd Herremans in 2005, and the first wide receiver in school history to be drafted, though his early role on the team was more on the special teams rather than taking snaps at wide receiver.[14]
Janis made his NFL debut on September 28, 2014, against the Chicago Bears, but he recorded no statistics.[15] He appeared in one more game as a rookie, which was against the Miami Dolphins.[16]
In 2015, Janis appeared in all 16 games in the regular season as a kick returner and backup receiver.[17] His two receptions for 79 yards against the San Diego Chargers were his only receiving statistics for the regular season.[18] Janis had a breakout game in the NFC Divisional Round game on January 16, 2016, against the Arizona Cardinals. He caught seven passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns, including a 41-yard Hail Mary pass from Aaron Rodgers on the final play of regulation to bring the game into overtime, but the Packers lost 26–20.[1] 101 of these yards came on the game-tying drive to end regulation; Janis also caught a 60-yard pass on 4th and 20 from the Packers' four-yard line to set up the tying score.[19]
On August 10, 2016, Janis fractured at least one of the bones in his right hand during a ball-security drill at Packers training camp.[20] He remained in a backup role during the season. Janis had a receiving touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons in the narrow 33–32 loss. Overall, in the 2016 season, he recorded 11 receptions for 93 yards and a touchdown to go along with a 19-yard rushing touchdown, which occurred against the Seattle Seahawks.[21][22]
In the 2017 season, Janis mainly had a special teams role. He recorded two receptions for 12 yards and three kick returns for 43 net yards.[23]
Cleveland Browns
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On March 30, 2018, Janis signed with the Cleveland Browns.[24] He was released on August 31.[25]
NFL career statistics
Regular season
Postseason
Personal life
Janis and his wife, Alyssa, have four children.[26]
In April 2019, Janis bought Timmy Tire Center in East Tawas, Michigan, where he had been employed in high school and college, and renamed it Janis Tire and Auto.[27]
