Jason Bean

Jason Bean (born June 9, 1999) is an American professional football quarterback for the DC Defenders of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football for the North Texas Mean Green and the Kansas Jayhawks. He was drafted first overall in the 2024 UFL draft by the Memphis Showboats.

Early life Bean attended Lake Ridge High School in Mansfield, Texas. After graduation, he committed to playing college football at the University of North Texas.

College career North Texas Bean attended the University of North Texas from 2018 to 2020, during which time he played for the university's football team, the Mean Green. He played in only one game his first year on campus, thus returning as a redshirt freshman his second year. He received various accolades in his third year, including being named Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week, Manning Award Star of the Week, and Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Player of the Week. He was also included on the Davey O’Brien Award Great 8 list.

Kansas Bean transferred to the University of Kansas in the spring of 2021 to continue his collegiate career. He was made the starter the 2023 season opener and completed 22 of 28 passing attempts for 276 yards and two touchdowns, while also adding 41 yards on the ground, as he helped the Jayhawks beat Missouri State. In the 2023 Guaranteed Rate Bowl, Bean threw for 449 yards and six passing touchdowns, which were the most passing touchdowns by a Big 12 player in a bowl game in conference history.

College statistics Season Team Games Passing Rushing 2018 North Texas 1 0 — 0 2 0.0 0 0.0 0 1 -100.0 4 14 3.5 0 2019 North Texas 7 0 — 22 35 62.9 176 5.0 3 3 116.2 14 80 5.7 0 2020 North Texas 8 7 3–4 79 155 54.5 1,131 7.8 14 5 145.0 56 346 6.2 5 2021 Kansas 11 9 1–8 102 182 56.0 1,252 6.9 6 6 118.1 92 400 4.3 2 2022 Kansas 12 4 1–3 87 136 64.0 1,280 9.4 14 4 171.1 38 222 5.8 4 2023 Kansas 12 10 6–3 124 199 62.3 2,130 10.7 18 7 175.0 47 280 6.0 3 Career 51 30 11–18 414 699 5,969 59.2 8.5 55 26 149.5 251 1,342 5.3 14

Professional career

Indianapolis Colts Bean signed with the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent on May 9, 2024. On July 17, he was drafted first overall by the Memphis Showboats in the 2024 UFL draft. Bean was waived by the Colts on August 27, during roster cuts and signed with the teams' practice squad the next day. He was listed on the Colts' roster as a quarterback/wide receiver. He signed a reserve/future contract with Indianapolis on January 6, 2025. Despite being under contract with the Colts, Bean has been incorrectly written about by multiple press outlets as being a member of the Showboats in the lead-up to the 2025 UFL season, including ESPN.

On August 26, 2025, Bean was waived by the Colts as part of final roster cuts.

Louisville Kings On January 12, 2026, Bean was allocated to the Louisville Kings of the United Football League (UFL). Unlike with the Showboats, Bean agreed to report to Kings training camp and was named the team's starting quarterback. Bean started the Kings' first four games of the season before being traded.

DC Defenders On April 19, 2026, Bean was traded to the DC Defenders in exchange for quarterback Mike DiLiello.

UFL career statistics Regular season SeasonTeam Games Passing Rushing 2026 LOU 4 4 1–3 58 122 47.5 819 6.7 4 3 70.4 16 63 3.9 0 DC 1 1 0–1 13 28 46.4 165 5.9 1 2 47.5 11 116 10.6 0 Career 5 5 1–4 71 150 47.3 984 6.6 5 5 66.1 27 179 6.6 0