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Jeff Janis

Jeff Janis
refer to caption
Janis with the Green Bay Packers in 2014
No. 83
Position:Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1991-06-24) June 24, 1991 (age 33)
Tawas City, Michigan, U.S.
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:219 lb (99 kg)
Career information
High school:Tawas Area (Tawas City)
College:Saginaw Valley State (2009–2013)
NFL draft:2014 / round: 7 / pick: 236
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career NFL statistics
Receptions:17
Receiving yards:200
Return yards:568
Total touchdowns:2
Stats at Pro Football Reference

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.

Early life

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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

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Janis attended Saginaw Valley State University from 2009 to 2013, and played for the Cardinals.[3][4] After red-shirting in 2009, he caught 9 passes for 130 yards and one 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, he 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, he caught 83 passes for 1,572 yards and 14 touchdowns. He earned himself 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

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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

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External videos
video icon Janis's NFL Combine workout
Pre-draft measurables
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

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Janis was selected in the seventh round (236th overall) by the Green Bay Packers in the 2014 NFL draft.[11][12][13] Janis 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 official statistics.[15] He appeared in one more game, which was against the Miami Dolphins, in the 2014 season.[16]

In the 2015 season, 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] He 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. The Packers, however, lost 26–20 in overtime.[1] 101 of these yards came on the game-tying drive to end regulation; he also caught a 60-yard pass on 4th and 20 from the Packers' 4-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 in the 2016 season. He had a receiving touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons in a 33–32 loss. Overall, in the 2016 season, he recorded 11 receptions for 93 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown in addition to a 19-yard rushing touchdown, which occurred against the Seattle Seahawks.[21][22] In the 2017 season, he 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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Janis with the Browns during the 2018 preseason

On March 30, 2018, Janis signed with the Cleveland Browns.[24] On August 31, he was released.[25]

NFL career statistics

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Regular season

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Year Team GP GS Receiving Kick returns Fumbles
Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Ret Yds Avg Lng TD FUM Lost
2014 GB 3 0 2 16 8.0 9 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
2015 GB 16 0 2 79 39.5 46 0 14 406 29.0 70 0 0 0
2016 GB 16 11 11 93 8.5 25 1 6 119 19.8 28 0 0 0
2017 GB 16 0 2 12 6.0 12 0 3 43 14.3 17 0 0 0
Total 51 11 17 200 11.8 46 1 23 568 24.7 70 0 0 0

Postseason

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Year Team GP GS Receiving Kick returns Fumbles
Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Ret Yds Avg Lng TD FUM Lost
2015 GB 2 0 7 145 20.7 60 2 4 99 24.8 35 0 0 0
2016 GB 3 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 3 77 25.7 33 0 0 0
Total 5 0 7 145 20.7 60 2 7 176 25.1 35 0 0 0

After-football career

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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.[26]

References

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  1. ^ a b Thompson, Lee (January 16, 2016). "Green Bay Packers Hail Mary makes Tawas native Jeff Janis instant star". MLive.com. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  2. ^ "Green Bay Packers hero honored by his Michigan hometown with Jeff Janis Week". MLive.com. January 21, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  3. ^ "National spotlight shines on SVSU alum Janis". Saginaw Valley State University. January 19, 2016. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  4. ^ "Jeff Janis". Saginaw Valley State Cardinals. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  5. ^ Niziolek, Michael (December 17, 2013). "Honors keep coming for SVSU wide receiver Jeff Janis with selection to AFCA All-America Team". mlive.com. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  6. ^ "After Green Bay Packers Hail Mary, fans far beyond Tawas know Jeff Janis". MLive.com. January 29, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  7. ^ Niziolek, Michael (December 13, 2013). "SVSU wide receiver Jeff Janis invited to play in 2014 Senior Bowl". mlive.com. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  8. ^ Wilde, Jason (June 8, 2016). "Packers, Aaron Rodgers hopeful Jeff Janis can deliver on potential". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 16, 2016.
  9. ^ "Jeff Janis Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved August 9, 2016.
  10. ^ "Jeff Janis - Saginaw Valley State, WR : 2014 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved August 9, 2016.
  11. ^ "2014 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  12. ^ "Jeff Janis Draft Profile – NFL.com". NFL.com. Retrieved August 9, 2016.
  13. ^ Niziolek, Michael (May 11, 2014). "SVSU wide receiver Jeff Janis selected in the seventh round, 236th overall pick, by the Green Bay Packers". mlive.com. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  14. ^ "Saginaw Valley St. Drafted Players/Alumni". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  15. ^ "Green Bay Packers at Chicago Bears - September 28th, 2014". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  16. ^ "Jeff Janis 2014 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  17. ^ "Jeff Janis 2015 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  18. ^ "San Diego Chargers at Green Bay Packers - October 18th, 2015". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  19. ^ "Divisional Round - Green Bay Packers at Arizona Cardinals - January 16th, 2016". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  20. ^ Demovsky, Rob (August 13, 2016). "Packers WR Jeff Janis has fracture in right hand". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
  21. ^ "Seattle Seahawks at Green Bay Packers - December 11th, 2016". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  22. ^ "Jeff Janis 2016 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  23. ^ "Jeff Janis 2017 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
  24. ^ "Browns sign WR Jeff Janis and QB Drew Stanton". ClevelandBrowns.com. March 30, 2018. Archived from the original on March 31, 2018.
  25. ^ "Browns reduce roster to 72". ClevelandBrowns.com. August 31, 2018. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  26. ^ Meinert, Kendra (July 1, 2019). "Jordy Nelson and Jeff Janis: Just a couple of former Packers wide receivers talking tires". Green Bay Press-Gazette. Gannett. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
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