James Douglas Jensen (born November 28, 1953) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

, and

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

at the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

Early years

Jensen attended

Davenport Central High School Central High School, or Davenport Central High School, is a public four-year comprehensive high school located in Davenport, Iowa, United States. The building opened in 1907 as "Davenport High School," and is now one of three public high school ...

where he was a multiple state champion in

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

, winning the indoor high and low hurdles, the pentathlon, the outdoor high hurdles and was a member of the state champion mile medley relay team. He accepted a football scholarship from the

. Measuring 6' 3", 230 lbs. and running a 4.4 40-yard dash, he earned eight varsity letters, four in football and four in track and field. In football, he was the team's leading rusher as a sophomore and junior, finishing his career with 367 carries for 1,661 rushing yards (4.5-yard avg.) and 9

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

s. In track, he competed as a hurdler. In the 1975 Senior Bowl, he played fullback and was the game's leading rusher. In 1988, he was inducted into the Iowa High School Sports Hall of Fame and to the Quad Cities Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Jensen was selected by the

in the second round (40th overall) of the 1976 NFL draft. As a rookie, he played mainly on special teams, and because of his versatility and size, he was moved between

and

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

. In 1977, he became expendable when Tony Dorsett was selected, so he was traded to the

in exchange for a sixth round draft choice (#160-Mike Salzano), after never having a rushing attempt with the Cowboys.

Denver Broncos

Jensen was a versatile

for the Denver Broncos and helped the team reach

Super Bowl XII Super Bowl XII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion 1977 Dallas Cowboys season, Dallas Cowboys and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion 1977 Denver Broncos season, Denver Broncos to dec ...

in 1977, playing against his former teammates. In

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...

, he was placed on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in t ...

with a knee injury. He led the team in rushing (476 yards) and receptions (49) in

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

. The next year, he was released before the season started.

Green Bay Packers

On September 9,

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

, he signed as a free agent with the

, to be the backup for Gerry Ellis and to play special teams. On September 7,

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...

, he was released. On September 13, one day after the Packers defeated the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

in their season opener, he was re-signed to replace an injured Ellis. With Bart Starr as the head coach, in

the Packers made their first appearance in the playoffs after a 10-year drought. On April 15,

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

, he announced his retirement.

Personal life

Following his retirement from the

, he made his home in Colorado and entered the advertising/marketing/public relations field. He has three children: Jessica, Cody and Jack, one grand daughter, Savannah, and one brother, Andy. He currently lives in Minnesota at Rose Lake near Vergas, and is a consultant for advertising, public relations, communications, marketing and special events projects. He also is a corporate motivational speaker and paints, writes and pursues life adventures in his spare time. Jensen is an avid motorcyclist and enjoys traveling into MX and to other off-the-beaten-path places. He also enjoys fly tying and fly fishing for warm water species, upland bird hunting, archery and running. He created the annual Run 'Round the Rose 12 Mile Run for Diabetes in Vergas, MN in honor of his mother, Lois, who had adult onset diabetes for her entire adult life. He has competed in this race since its inception and finished third in the Masters category in 2009. He also is an accomplished, and published, photographer, columnist and artist. He has written for the Rocky Mountain News, Greeley Tribune, WindsorNOW! and Thunder Press magazine. He credits a lot of his accomplishments in life to the influence of several key people: his father, John, a World War II veteran and son of a Danish immigrant, his high school coaches Jim Fox and Ira Dunsworth, Broncos head coach Red Miller, assistant coach Paul Roach, and Bill Reichardt (University of Iowa Big Ten MVP running back in 1951).

References

External links

Colorado Classics: Jim Jensen, former Denver Broncos running back
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jensen, Jim 1953 births Living people Players of American football from Davenport, Iowa American football running backs American football tight ends Iowa Hawkeyes football players Dallas Cowboys players Denver Broncos players Green Bay Packers players American people of Danish descent