Adam Jones (American football)

Adam Bernard Jones (born September 30, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback and return specialist in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons. Nicknamed "Pacman", he played college football for the West Virginia Mountaineers and was selected by the Tennessee Titans, sixth pick overall in the 2005 NFL draft.

Jones' career was largely marred by numerous legal issues, and he was suspended from the NFL on two occasions: for the entire 2007 season and for part of the 2008 season due to off-the-field conduct. Jones has been arrested more times than any other NFL player in the 21st century. The Titans traded away Jones to the Dallas Cowboys in 2008 following his first suspension. After being released by the Cowboys after one season, Jones spent a year away from football before being acquired by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2010, where he spent the majority of his career at 8 seasons. With the Bengals, he was a First-Team All-Pro in 2014 and a Pro Bowl selection in 2015. After leaving the Bengals in 2017, he played in seven games for the Denver Broncos in 2018 before announcing his retirement in 2019.

Outside of football, he has been involved in professional wrestling, boxing and music. During his NFL exile in 2007, he began making appearances in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), but he was prevented from in-ring action by the Titans front office. Despite that, he teamed with Ron Killings as Team Pacman, and they were TNA World Tag Team Champions for over a month. Also in 2007, Jones started up his own record label and was one half of the rap duo Posterboyz. After his retirement from football, Jones began training to be a boxer, but was defeated in his first amateur bout in 2021.

During 2023, he made numerous in-studio appearances for The Pat McAfee Show, before co-hosting Runnin' It Back w/ Pac + Zach on BetOnline.

Jones was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and raised by his mother, Deborah Jones, and his grandmother, Christine Jones. His father was killed in a robbery in 1991 at the age of 26. Jones' mother gave him the nickname "Pacman" when he was a child, saying that he would change direction as fast as the video game character Pac-Man. His nickname was often used more than his given name, to the point where it was represented by a "P" on the back of his Titans jersey. As a child growing up in the Sandtown neighborhood of Atlanta, he was coached by longtime Sandtown coach Gary Jones. When Jones was a freshman at West Virginia University, his grandmother died of cancer. Jones only missed one game of his three-year college career, which was to attend her funeral. On the day of the NFL draft, Jones wore a T-shirt that featured his grandmother's picture.

Jones attended Westlake High School, in Atlanta, Georgia. In 2005, Westlake had the most alumni in the NFL with six players. Jones played in the Georgia-Florida all-star game, and was selected as the conference "Player of the Year" following his senior year after totaling 120 tackles, six interceptions and 1,850 rushing yards.

In addition to his accomplishments in football, Jones also earned All-American honors in basketball and track. His basketball team won two state championships.

Jones was an Athletic Coaching Education major and a member of the Athletic Director's Academic Honor Roll. As a freshman in 2002, Jones appeared in 11 games for West Virginia as a reserve cornerback and safety. He totaled one interception and one forced fumble with 36 tackles. During 2003, he appeared in all 13 games, starting nine at cornerback, and taking over full-time kick return and punt return duties. Jones' second season resulted in a second-team All-Big East Conference selection with his career-high 89 tackles and four interceptions, one being for a touchdown. He also had six tackles for losses, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries. He also had a career-high 12 passes deflected that season. In a game against Boston College, Jones scored two touchdowns in a 35–28 win over the Eagles, one an 87-yard kick return and the other, a 47-yard interception return. Jones also had a career-high 12 tackles against Miami. Jones totaled 98 punt return yards on 16 punt returns and 867 kick return yards, including an 87-yard touchdown return.