Dane
Jackson.
Dane
Jackson.
Pittsburgh· 6'0"· 187 lb· 4.57s 40
"Buffalo drafted Pitt's instinctive, 38-start corner at No. 239, and the converted quarterback became a six-season NFL defender with 178 tackles, 30 passes defensed and three interceptions."Pre-draft read
Jackson was an outside cornerback in Pitt's press-heavy defense, a 5-11, roughly 185-pounder who started 38 straight games over three seasons. His primary trait was ball production: a former high school quarterback, he read routes, played the catch point with timing and broke up 14 passes in 2018 and 12 more in 2019, leading Pitt both years.
His secondary trait was competitiveness in press, where he stayed tight to receivers and fought through contact despite a slight frame. He tackled willingly and forced four fumbles in 2018. His athletic ceiling was average, and his signature was the instincts and hands of a converted quarterback who always seemed to find the ball.
Press-man or Cover 3 scheme that lets an instinctive corner play tight at the line and attack the ball at the catch point.
Year 1: special teams player and depth corner. Ceiling: spot starter and rotational outside corner.
Scheme that leaves corners alone on an island against big, fast receivers without safety help over the top.
His instincts fit best with safety help behind him.
Dane Jackson 2019 Pittsburgh Highlights || HD
His second-team All-ACC season.
Dane Jackson DB Pitt 2020 draft Prospect Media
Pre-draft training footage.
Dane Jackson with a INT on Matthew Stafford
An NFL interception with Buffalo.
Jackson projected as a productive, instinctive corner whose size and average speed limited him to the final round. Evaluators liked his ball skills, toughness and experience in press coverage, but questioned whether a slight frame and modest long speed would hold up against NFL receivers.
A two-star recruit and former high school quarterback, he redshirted, played a reserve role in 2016, then started every game from 2017 through 2019. In 2018 he led Pitt with 14 pass breakups and four forced fumbles and earned honorable mention All-ACC; in 2019 he made 43 tackles, an interception and a team-high 12 pass breakups to reach second-team All-ACC. The flags were his size, long speed and occasional grabbiness in press.
Most boards viewed him as a late-round or priority free agent corner. Buffalo took him at No. 239 for special teams and developmental depth in press coverage. The Bills valued instinctive, competitive corners who fit their zone-and-press mix, and his ball production suggested his game would translate better than his measurables.
- 01
Ball production
Led Pitt with 14 pass breakups in 2018 and 12 in 2019, reading routes and playing the catch point with timing.
- 02
Press competitiveness
Stayed tight to receivers in press and fought through contact, fitting an aggressive man-coverage scheme.
- 03
Durability
Started all 38 games over his final three seasons at Pitt, never missing time as the anchor of the secondary.
- 04
Takeaway instincts
Forced four fumbles in 2018 and added interceptions in 2016 and 2019, showing a knack for turnovers.
- 05
Football IQ
A former high school quarterback who read concepts quickly and anticipated throws rather than reacting late.
- 01
Slight frame
At about 185 pounds he could be outmuscled by bigger receivers at the catch point and in the run game.
- 02
Average long speed
Lacked the recovery speed to carry vertical routes if he lost leverage early in the rep against faster receivers.
- 03
Grabby in press
Relied on his hands downfield at times, drawing penalties when receivers separated late in routes.
- 04
Late-round tools
Did not test as a standout athlete, giving teams little margin if his instincts did not translate.
Relative Athletic Score (Kent Lee Platte) benchmarks combine/pro-day numbers against every measured prospect at the position since 1987. 10.00 is elite; 5.00 is average.
— — — positional median (p50)
- 40 yd
- 4.57sp50
- Vertical
- 35inp50
- Broad jump
- 122inp50
- Three-cone
- 7.07sp50
- Shuttle
- 4.27sp50
- Bench
- —rep
| Yr | Team | G | Tkl | Sk | Int | PD | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Pittsburgh | 12 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 2017 | Pittsburgh | 12 | 40 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 2018 | Pittsburgh | 12 | 47 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 4 |
| 2019 | Pittsburgh | 13 | 43 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 0 |
| Career | — | 49 | 148 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 0 |
2016, 2018 and 2019 lines from Pitt via Sports Illustrated; 2017 tackles and passes defensed from CFBTrack. Sum 148 tackles and 39 passes defensed; CFBTrack totals 142 tackles and 38 passes defensed. Interceptions in 2017 and 2018 are not confirmed, so career interceptions are left blank.
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
The realized outcome: a spot starter and rotational corner for six seasons.
Undrafted Bills corner who became a multiyear starter on instincts and toughness.
Undersized late-round corner who bounced between practice squads.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
Jackson spent most of his rookie year on Buffalo's practice squad and active roster before growing into a rotational role and spot starter in the Bills' secondary. He played four seasons in Buffalo, signed with Carolina for 2024 and appeared in nine games before being released, then returned to Buffalo for a second stint in 2025. He finished six NFL seasons with 178 tackles, 30 passes defensed, three interceptions and two forced fumbles.
In hindsight the pick was an excellent return for a No. 239 selection. The size and speed concerns evaluators flagged capped him as a spot starter rather than a No. 1 corner, but the instincts, ball skills and toughness they praised translated directly to the NFL. Most seventh-round corners never start a game, and he gave Buffalo years of reliable snaps on a contending defense. His career shows that ball skills and instincts can outlast a modest athletic profile.