Dontavian "Lucky" Jackson (born July 17, 1997) is an American 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 ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

for the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

of 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). 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 ...

for the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, and has also played for the

Edmonton Elks The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division (CFL), West Division and plays their home games at Commonw ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL) and the

DC Defenders The DC Defenders are a professional American football team based in Washington, D.C. The Defenders compete in the United Football League (2024), United Football League (UFL) as a member of the XFL Conference. The team was founded by Vince McMaho ...

of the XFL.

College career

After being ranked a two-star recruit by Rivals.com, Jackson committed to

Western Kentucky Western Kentucky is the western portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It generally includes part or all of several more widely recognized regions of the state. ;Always included * The Jackson Purchase, the state's westernmost generally recogniz ...

to play

. After redshirting as a freshman in 2015, Jackson had 26 catches for 395 yards and a pair of touchdowns on the year in 2016. In 2017, Jackson had an impressive campaign, as he racked up 39 catches for 600 yards and three touchdowns. In a Nov 17 contest vs. Middle Tennessee State, he hauled in a 93-yard touchdown, which was both the longest play in WKU history as well as only one of eight 90+ yard pass plays in FBS history. As a redshirt junior, Jackson started 11 games. He had 50 catches for 552 yards and four touchdowns, leading the Hilltoppers in receptions and touchdowns. Lucky ended his Hilltopper career with a bang, putting his name in the WKU record books while leading the team with 94 receptions and 1,133 yards as well as four touchdowns. In the First Responder Bowl against

Western Michigan West Michigan and Western Michigan are terms for a region in the U.S. state of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Generally, it refers to the Grand Rapids- Muskegon-Holland area, and more broadly to most of the region along the Lower Peninsula's Lake ...

, he earned MVP honors while hauling in 17 passes. His 94 receptions in 2019 ranked eighth in FBS that season and second in all-time WKU program history for a single season.

Professional career

The Spring League

After an impressing pro day, Jackson went undrafted in the

2020 NFL draft The 2020 NFL draft was the 85th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2020 NFL season. The first round was held on April 23, followed by the second and third rounds on April 24. The ...

. He played for the Blues of

The Spring League The Spring League (TSL) was an American football Minor league football (gridiron), developmental league and scouting event (pro showcase) that played from 2017 to 2021 and was founded by Brian Woods. Aimed at professional football (gridiron), p ...

in 2021.

Edmonton Elks

On September 13, 2022, Jackson signed with the

of the

(CFL) and played in one game for them.

DC Defenders

On November 16, 2023, Jackson was selected by the

of the XFL in the 11th round (81st overall) in the Skill Players round of the 2023 XFL Draft, He played in all 10 regular season games recording over 36 catches for 573 yards with five touchdowns. He was named to the All-XFL team for the 2023 season along with teammates Jordan Ta'amu, Abram Smith, Liam Fornadel, Davin Bellamy, Michael Joseph, and Daniel Whelan.

Minnesota Vikings

On May 23, 2023, Jackson signed his first NFL contract with the

. He was released on August 29, 2023, before being signed back to the

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

on September 12, 2023. He was promoted to the active roster on January 6, 2024. Jackson was waived by the Vikings on August 27, 2024, and re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 16, 2025.

References

External links

Minnesota Vikings bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Lucky 1997 births Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football players Minnesota Vikings players Players of American football from Lexington, Kentucky Living people American football wide receivers Canadian football wide receivers Players of Canadian football from Kentucky Edmonton Elks players DC Defenders players The Spring League players