Former Tennessee Vols standout admits he uses getting waived by the Titans as motivation

Former Tennessee Vols defensive back Theo Jackson is a Nashville native who stayed in-state to play college football.

And for a few months, it looked like he would be staying in-state to play in the NFL, too.

Jackson, who played at Tennessee from 2017 to 2021, was selected by the Tennessee Titans in the sixth round of the 2022 NFL Draft.

The ideal scenario, however, didn't last long for Jackson. The Titans waived Jackson just before the start of the 2022 season and subsequently signed the former Vol to their practice squad.

On October 11, 2022, the Minnesota Vikings signed Jackson off the Titans' practice squad.

"Getting selected to your hometown team, that's amazing, then getting cut, that feeling of hurt," explained Jackson in a video posted to the Vikings' YouTube channel earlier this month. "So I just really internalized that. And then just tried to use that to fuel me. And that's gotten me to the point where I'm at now."

Jackson's carved out a nice role for himself in Minnesota, thanks in large part to his versatility (something he attributes to the way he was used at Tennessee).

The former Vol has played in 26 games for the Vikings (with 30 tackles and an interception) over the last two seasons.

Jackson is considered a near-lock to make the Vikings' 53-man roster ahead of the 2024 season.

I guess using getting released by the Titans as motivation has worked out quite well for the 25 year old defensive back.

Related: Former Vols DB Brandon Turnage explains why he transferred to Ole Miss and makes strong statement about his time at Tennessee