Jason Vander Laan
Jason Kenneth Vander Laan (born September 22, 1992) is a former American football tight end and current offensive coordinator for Rockford High School. He played college football as a quarterback at Ferris State. Vander Laan was signed by the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent in 2016.[1]
Rockford High School | |||||
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Position: | Offensive coordinator | ||||
Personal information | |||||
Born: | Frankfort, Illinois, U.S. | September 22, 1992||||
Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||
Weight: | 245 lb (111 kg) | ||||
Career information | |||||
High school: | Chicago Christian (Palos Heights, Illinois) | ||||
College: | Ferris State | ||||
Undrafted: | 2016 | ||||
Career history | |||||
As a player: | |||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||
As a coach: | |||||
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Career highlights and awards | |||||
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Career NFL statistics | |||||
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Player stats at NFL.com · PFR |
College career
At Ferris State, Vander Laan set the NCAA all-divisions record for career rushing yards by a quarterback with 5,953.[2] He also set the NCAA Division II record for rushing yards in a single season by a quarterback (1,607 in 2013).[3] Also, at Ferris State he won 2 Harlon Hill Trophies, which is awarded to the best player in all of NCAA Division II.[4]
Legacy
On October 22, 2022, Vander Laan's No. 15 was retired by the Bulldogs.[5]
Professional career
New York Jets
Vander Laan was signed by the Jets as an undrafted free agent on May 5, 2016. With the Jets, he converted from a quarterback to a tight end.[1] He was released by the team on August 28, 2016.[6] He was re-signed to the practice squad on December 20, 2016.[7] He signed a reserve/future contract with the Jets on January 2, 2017.[8] He was waived by the Jets on September 3, 2017.[9]
Indianapolis Colts
On November 3, 2017, Vander Laan was signed to the Indianapolis Colts' practice squad.[10] He was promoted to the active roster on November 25, 2017.[11] He was waived by the Colts on May 7, 2018.[12]
Carolina Panthers
On May 21, 2018, Vander Laan signed with the Carolina Panthers.[13] He was waived on September 1, 2018, and signed to the practice squad the next day.[14][15] He was promoted to the active roster on December 19, 2018.[16]
Vander Laan was waived during final roster cuts on August 30, 2019.[17]
New England Patriots
On September 25, 2019, Vander Laan signed with the New England Patriots practice squad.[18] On October 15, 2019, he was released.[19]
New Orleans Saints
On October 23, 2019, Vander Laan was signed to the New Orleans Saints practice squad.[20] He was promoted to the active roster on November 22, 2019.[21] He was placed on injured reserve on December 6, 2019, with a head injury.[22]
Vander Laan chose to opt-out of the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic on July 28, 2020.[23] He was waived after the season on February 12, 2021.[24]
Coaching career
On March 10, 2021, Vander Laan was hired by Rockford High School as an offensive coordinator.[25]
References
- Allen, Eric (May 5, 2016). "Jets Sign 13 Undrafted Free agents". New York Jets. Archived from the original on September 5, 2017. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
- "Ferris State QB Vander Laan leads AP Little All-America team". ESPN. Associated Press. December 17, 2015. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
- National Collegiate Athletic Association (2015). Division II Football Records (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. p. 4. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
- Scheldt, Marshall (December 18, 2015). "Vander Laan Wins Second Harlon Hill Trophy: Bulldog Becomes Fourth Player to Ever Win Prestigious Award Twice". Ferris State University Torch. Big Rapids, MI. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
- "Ferris football to retire Vander Laan's number on Saturday". Big Rapids Pioneer. October 21, 2022. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
- "Jets Release 11, Place Devin Smith on PUP List". New York Jets. August 28, 2016. Archived from the original on September 4, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
- Greenberg, Ethan (December 20, 2016). "Jets Place Winters and Catapano on IR". New York Jets. Archived from the original on August 5, 2017.
- "Jets Sign 5 Players to Reserve/Future Deals". New York Jets. January 2, 2017. Archived from the original on September 4, 2017.
- Allen, Eric (September 3, 2017). "Jets Claim Four Including Two Receivers". New York Jets. Archived from the original on December 18, 2017.
- "Roster Move: Colts Sign TE Jason Vander Laan to Practice Squad". Indianapolis Colts. November 3, 2017. Archived from the original on November 9, 2017.
- "Roster Moves: Colts Elevate TE Jason Vander Laan to Active Roster". Indianapolis Colts. November 25, 2017. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017.
- "Roster Move: Colts Claim TE Randall Telfer". Indianapolis Colts. May 7, 2018. Archived from the original on May 8, 2018.
- Smith, Bradley (May 21, 2018). "Panthers Roster Moves: Jason Vander Laan and Ashaad Mabry Signed; Korren Kirven Waived". Cat Scratch Reader.
- Voth, Bill (September 1, 2018). "Panthers Trim Roster to 53". Carolina Panthers.
- Voth, Bill (September 2, 2018). "Frazier, Allen among 10 signed to practice squad". Carolina Panthers.
- "Panthers place Graham Gano on injured reserve". Panthers.com. December 19, 2018.
- Henson, Max (August 30, 2019). "Panthers announce first wave of 2019 roster cuts". Panthers.com. Retrieved August 30, 2019.
- "Patriots sign QB Cody Kessler to the 53-man roster; Sign TE Jason Vander Laan to the practice squad". Patriots.com. September 25, 2019.
- Cox, Zach (October 15, 2019). "Patriots Cut Quarterback Cody Kessler Amid Flurry Of Roster Moves". NESN.com. NESN. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
- "Saints sign four players, bring back LB Stephone Anthony". Saints Wire. USA Today. October 23, 2019.
- "Saints make a series of transactions, send wide receiver Austin Carr to reserve/injured list". NOLA.com. November 22, 2019.
- Williams, Charean (December 6, 2019). "Saints re-sign Michael Ola, place Jason Vander Laan on IR". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports.
- Just, Amie (July 28, 2020). "Saints TE Jason Vander Laan opts out of 2020 season". NOLA.com. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
- Just, Amie (February 12, 2021). "Saints release veteran G Nick Easton, save roughly $6 million against salary cap for 2021". NOLA.com. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
- Kaminski, Steve (March 10, 2021). "Ferris State's Jason Vander Laan lands high school coaching gig". mlive. Retrieved January 16, 2023.