McKinnley Jackson

McKinnley Jackson (born December 26, 2001) is an American professional football defensive tackle. He played college football for the Texas A&M Aggies.

Early life Jackson's hometown is Lucedale, Mississippi, and he attended George County High School. In Jackson's high school career, he notched 308 tackles with 135 going for a loss, 34 sacks, six fumble recoveries, 16 forced fumbles, two blocked field goals, and two rushing touchdowns. Jackson would decide to commit to play college football at Texas A&M over other schools such as Alabama, Auburn, and LSU.

College career In the 2021 Orange Bowl, Jackson had two tackles with one being for a loss, and a sack, as he helped the Aggies win their bowl, beating North Carolina. Jackson finished the 2020 season with 13 tackles with two going for a loss, a sack and a half, and two pass deflections. For his performance on the season, Jackson was named to the 2020 SEC All Freshman Team. In the 2021 season, Jackson finished the year with 14 tackles with one being for a loss, and a sack. In week eight of the 2022 season, Jackson had a career performance, racking up 12 tackles with 1.5 tackles going for a loss, and a sack, but Texas A&M would fall to Ole Miss. Jackson finished his breakout 2022 season with 37 tackles with seven going for a loss, two sacks, and a fumble recovery. Jackson was named preseason second team all SEC, for the 2023 season.

Professional career

Jackson was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the third round (97th overall) of the 2024 NFL Draft. He was placed on injured reserve on August 29, 2024. He was activated on October 4.

On August 30, 2026, Jackson was waived by the Bengals as part of final roster cuts.