Avery Jones
Plays like an extra linebacker near the line. On tape: 8 tackles and 2 sacks against Illinois State, Week 2, 2026.
42 tackles · 2 sacks
Play style
Lives near the line of scrimmage as a de facto extra linebacker.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
42 tackles. 1 pass defended. 0 interceptions. 2.5 TFL.
Counts only, never a rate — splash-event sample sizes this small (interceptions, pass breakups, TFL) are noise as a rate and signal only as a tally.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Northern Illinois | 42 | 25 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 1 |
| Career | 42 | 25 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 1 |
Last game (Wk 9): 2 tackles.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 8 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 0-40@ No. 22 Iowa | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 24-28vs Illinois State | 8 | 8 | 2.0 | 2.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 8 tackles |
| Wk 3 | L 17-42@ Arizona | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 14-35@ Georgia State | 6 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 7-28vs Air Force | 6 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 23-41@ Wyoming | 7 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 21-56vs Hawai'i | 7 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 9 | L 24-31@ UNLV | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 42 | 25 | 2.5 | 2.0 | — | 1 |
Oct. 31 · L 24-31 at UNLV, play by play
2 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 2 tackles for loss, 2 of them sacks, in the 8 games with play by play.
How Northern Illinois’s defense played that day
UNLV’s 10 drives: 5 stopped (2 takeaways) · 5 scored. While the game was within a score they held 5 of 10.
7 tackles, including 1 pass broken up.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
7 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
6 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 7 for him; the box score credits 6.
6 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 4 for him; the box score credits 3.
8 tackles, including 2 sacks, tied for 4th-most sacks in FBS that week.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 9 for him; the box score credits 8.
Sacked the quarterback for a 7-yard loss on 3rd and 8. Third quarter, down 21-17.
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Ratings of the games shown run from -10 to +16 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
2%1 pass breakupsTackle volume
42tackles this seasonTFL rate
6%2 TFL42 tackles · 2.5 for loss · 2 sacks · 1 pass breakup.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home3g | 7.0 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.3 |
| Road5g | 4.2 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 5.5 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 4.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Rob Harley
Pass share
53.1%
266 pass / 235 run
Plays / game
62.6
8 games
Team sack rate
8.0%
301 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2026
42 tackles in 8 games, about as many tackles a game as a typical FBS defensive back who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
2026 is in progress.
