J . J . Stokes Jeral Jamal Stokes ( born October 6 , 1972 ) is a retired American football wide receiver . Stokes played in the National Football League ( NFL ) for nine seasons . He played college football for UCLA , and was recognized as an All - American . A first - round selection in the 1994 NFL Draft , he played professionally for the San Francisco 49ers , Jacksonville Jaguars and New England Patriots of the NFL . Early years . Stokes was born in San Diego , California . He attended Point Loma High School in San Diego , where he was part of a talented high school football team that included quarterback Dan White and lineman La ' Roi Glover . The team was coached throughout Stokes ' four years by local legend Bennie Edens . College career . While attending University of California , Los Angeles ( UCLA ) , Stokes played for the UCLA Bruins football team from 1991 to 1994 . He earned Pac - 10 first - team honors as a sophomore . His breakout season came in his junior year when he was named the Pac - 10 Offensive Player of the Year . Stokes ' junior season was rewarded with a top ten finish in the balloting for that year ' s Heisman Trophy , being the only junior recognized . Stokes ' junior season ended with first - team All - American recognition by The Sporting News , AP , UPI , and Kodak . Stokes ' senior year began as the nation ' s leading Heisman contender but was quickly sidetracked by a severe upper thigh contusion suffered in the season ' s first game . Stokes still holds UCLA school records for receiving touchdowns in a season ( 17 in 1993 ) , receiving touchdowns in a career ( 28 ) , receiving yards in a game ( 263 vs . USC in 1992 ) and receptions in a game ( 14 vs . Wisconsin , 1994 Rose Bowl ) , among others . On October 9 , 2009 , Stokes was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame . Professional career . Stokes was selected with the first round ( tenth overall pick ) of the 1995 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers , and he played for the 49ers from to . The 49ers traded up to the No . 10 spot in the first round of the draft to select Stokes as the successor to the team ' s Hall of Fame receiver Jerry Rice . After a slow start to his rookie season , the former Bruin ultimately netted 38 receptions for 517 yards and four touchdowns , the last of which was tossed by Rice . During the 1996 season , Stokes suffered a broken hand and missed most of the season , leading to the emergence of the 49ers ' third round pick in the 1996 NFL Draft , wide receiver Terrell Owens . In 1997 , with Rice sidelined with a torn ACL , Stokes and Owens formed a formidable tandem for quarterback Steve Young , with Stokes hauling in 58 passes for 733 yards and four touchdowns . Once Rice returned , Stokes ' production did not falter as he would achieve career highs in receptions ( 63 ) , yards ( 770 ) and touchdowns ( eight ) . Stokes was also the recipient of Denver linebacker Bill Romanowski spitting in his face during a " Monday Night Football " game in December 1997 . Along with the rest of the team , Stokes ' production dropped in 1999 as a result of Young ' s career ending concussion in a Monday night game in Arizona . Football Outsiders called Stokes " the league ' s least valuable receiver " in 1999 . The 49ers released him in 2003 and he was initially signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars before going to New England . Stokes was rarely used in the Patriots offense , only contributing 15 catches for 154 yards during the 2003 campaign . New England released him and activated fullback Larry Centers near the end of the season . Life after football . He worked as a radio host for the ESPN radio affiliate based out of Modesto , California . Currently , he works as an analyst for Fox Sports on UCLA ' s football games and for High School football on the internet in Southern California .