Ryan Jensen (American football)

Summary

Ryan Jensen (born May 27, 1991) is an American former professional football player who was a center for nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the CSU Pueblo ThunderWolves and was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the sixth round of the 2013 NFL draft. He also spent six seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he won Super Bowl LV with the team.

Ryan Jensen
refer to caption
Jensen with the Buccaneers in 2021
No. 77, 66
Position:Center
Personal information
Born: (1991-05-27) May 27, 1991 (age 32)
Rangely, Colorado, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:319 lb (145 kg)
Career information
High school:Fort Morgan (Fort Morgan, Colorado)
College:CSU Pueblo (2009–2012)
NFL draft:2013 / Round: 6 / Pick: 203
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games played:100
Games started:90
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Early years edit

Jensen was born in Rangely, Colorado, and attended Fort Morgan High School. He was selected to the All-State first-team while in high school.[1] He also was named to the all-conference.

College career edit

Jensen attended Colorado State University Pueblo.

In his sophomore season, he was selected to the All-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Second-team along with being selected to the All-Colorado Second-team by the National Football Foundation.[1]

He was a Gene Upshaw Award finalist in his senior year at Colorado State University Pueblo and finished fifth in the voting.[2]

Jensen was also selected to participate in the 2013 Texas vs. the Nation all-star game following his senior season.[3]

Professional career edit

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
6 ft 3+12 in
(1.92 m)
317 lb
(144 kg)
32+12 in
(0.83 m)
9+18 in
(0.23 m)
5.23 s 1.85 s 3.03 s 4.56 s 7.69 s 25.5 in
(0.65 m)
8 ft 2 in
(2.49 m)
30 reps
All values from Pro Day[4]

Baltimore Ravens edit

Jensen was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the sixth round with the 203rd overall pick in the 2013 NFL draft.[5]

On August 30, 2014, Jensen was released by the Ravens and was signed to the practice squad the next day.[6][7] He was promoted to the active roster on December 16, 2014.[8]

Jensen became a full-time starter for the Ravens in 2017, starting in all 16 games at center.[9]

Tampa Bay Buccaneers edit

On March 19, 2018, Jensen signed a four-year, $42 million contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with $22 million guaranteed, making him the highest paid center in the NFL, as Ali Marpet moved from center to left guard to accommodate him. [10][11] He was the Buccaneers' center in their Super Bowl LV victory on February 7, 2021.[12][13] Jensen was among the three Buccaneers offensive linemen to be named to the National Football Conference 2021 Pro Bowl roster, a first for all three.

On March 14, 2022, Jensen signed a three-year, $39 million contract extension with the Buccaneers.[14] On July 28, 2022, Jensen experienced a severe knee injury during Buccaneers training camp and had to be carted off the field. He was placed on injured reserve on September 1, 2022.[15] He was activated for the wild card round of the playoffs on January 16, 2023.[16]

On August 29, 2023, Jensen was placed on injured reserve after aggravating his previous knee injury.[17] On February 2, 2024, Jensen announced his retirement from professional football.[18]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Colorado State Profile". .gothunderwolves.com.
  2. ^ "Jensen finishes fifth in Upshaw Award voting". Colorado State University Pueblo. December 17, 2012. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  3. ^ Legwold, Jeff (January 21, 2013). "NFL found its way to Pueblo to see Thunderwolves' prospect". DenverPost.com. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  4. ^ "Ryan Jensen, Colorado State-Pueblo, OG, 2013 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  5. ^ "2013 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  6. ^ Mink, Ryan (August 30, 2014). "Ravens Make Final Roster Cuts". BaltimoreRavens.com. Archived from the original on October 7, 2017. Retrieved April 11, 2017.
  7. ^ Hensley, Jamison (August 31, 2014). "Ravens sign nine to practice squad". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
  8. ^ Mink, Ryan (December 16, 2014). "Ravens Sign DT Casey Walker, Move Up OL Ryan Jensen". BaltimoreRavens.com. Archived from the original on November 23, 2017. Retrieved April 11, 2017.
  9. ^ "Ryan Jensen 2017 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  10. ^ Wesseling, Chris (March 16, 2018). "Buccaneers make Ryan Jensen highest-paid center". NFL.com. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
  11. ^ Smith, Scott (March 19, 2018). "Center-Piece: Ryan Jensen Signs in Tampa". Buccaneers.com. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  12. ^ Patra, Kevin (February 7, 2017). "What we learned from Buccaneers win over Chiefs in Super Bowl LV". NFL.com. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  13. ^ "Super Bowl LV – Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Kansas City Chiefs – February 7th, 2021". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  14. ^ Gordon, Grant (March 13, 2022). "Buccaneers re-signing center Ryan Jensen to three-year, $39M deal". NFL.com.
  15. ^ Smith, Scott (September 1, 2022). "Bucs Re-Sign Logan Ryan as Ryan Jensen Heads to I.R." Buccaneers.com.
  16. ^ Smith, Scott (January 16, 2023). "Ryan Jensen Activated from Injured Reserve". Buccaneers.com.
  17. ^ Baca, Michael (August 26, 2023). "Buccaneers C Ryan Jensen (knee) heading to injured reserve, won't play in 2023". NFL.com.
  18. ^ "Buccaneers Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen announces retirement from NFL after decade-long career". CBSSports.com. February 2, 2024. Retrieved February 2, 2024.

External links edit

  • Tampa Bay Buccaneers bio
  • CSU–Pueblo ThunderWolves bio