Jason Tucker Jason Tucker ( born June 24 , 1976 in San Francisco , California ) is a former American and Canadian football slotback and the current receivers coach for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League . He spent three years in the National Football League before joining the Edmonton Eskimos in 2002 . Tucker played for the Eskimos for seven seasons , winning two Grey Cup championships , before suffering a career - ending neck injury in 2008 . High school career . Tucker attended Robinson High School in Robinson , Texas , where he excelled in football and track and field , particularly long jumping , where he was a state finalist his junior and senior years . He also competed in the 400 - m relay at the state finals his senior year . Amusingly , he did not play football his first year of eligibility , instead acting as the equipment manager ; his mother had forbidden him to play football , fearing he would be injured . By his second year ( possibly due to an arm injury in a basketball game the previous year ) , she relented , and he made an immediate impact . As a high school player , he was not considered a vocal leader , but he did not have to be : his on - field heroics more than once breathed life into his teammates ( notably when he scored two touchdowns in the span of 30 seconds against the 1993 Troy Trojans ) . He played both ways his junior and senior years as a wide receiver and defensive back . College career . Tucker played college football for Texas Christian University . During his sophomore season , he caught 31 passes for 433 yards . The following year , he became the team ' s second leading receiver with 39 catches , for 692 yards , and four touchdowns . Even better numbers were expected for his senior year , however he did not play after being suspended for a rules violation . At TCU , Tucker amassed 1 , 197 yards on 78 pass receptions , for an average of 15 . 3 yards , and a total of five touchdowns . After a nice junior season in 1996 , he was suspended for his senior season because of unspecifed off - field violations . Despite missing the entire 1997 college season , it was apparent Tucker continued to train on his own , to improve his football skills , as evidenced by his clocking a 4 . 48 second , 40 yard dash , and finishing in the top five in agility drills at the NFL Combine . Professional career . Cincinnati Bengals . Tucker was drafted in the sixth round ( 167th overall ) of the 1998 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals . His stay in Cincinnati was a short one . He played in the preseason opener against the New York Giants , catching one pass for six yards . After pulling a hamstring in training camp , and reaching an injury settlement with the Bengals , Tucker was placed on waivers on August 19 , 1998 . Green Bay Packers . The Green Bay Packers added Tucker to their practice squad on October 28 , and then waived him after six weeks without ever putting him on the active roster . Dallas Cowboys . He was signed by the Dallas Cowboys before the start of the 1999 season and assigned to NFL Europe ' s Rhein Fire , where he had 26 receptions , for 454 yards , and three touchdowns . After playing in Europe , he participated in the Cowboys training camp and was the last player to make the roster as the team ' s sixth wide receiver ( one more than usual ) . His first catch was a six - yarder , in week five against the Philadelphia Eagles , after Michael Irvin suffered his career - ending injury . By November , he had moved up to no . 3 . After Ernie Mills pulled a muscle warming up for a December 5 game against the New England Patriots , Tucker became a starter . Mills was supposed to return for the December 21 game against New Orleans Saints , but instead , Tucker got his fourth straight start and had his best game , becoming part of Cowboys lore . Playing at both wide receiver and kickoff returner in Week 16 against the Saints , he produced one of the standout performances in team history with 331 combined net yards , the most in franchise history . His 203 kickoff return yards also set a franchise record - he also had an apparent 97 - yard return touchdown called back by penalty - and he added 128 receiving yards on seven catches , with a touchdown . The next week against the New York Giants , the Cowboys clinched a playoff spot behind 122 receiving yards from Tucker , including a 90 - yard touchdown and one 79 - yard kickoff return . His production made him the NFC special teams player of the month for December 1999 . He played in 30 games over the course of two seasons with the Cowboys , catching 38 passes for 580 yards and two touchdown s . The Cowboys released Tucker before the start of the 2001 season . Edmonton Eskimos . By 2002 , he had made the roster of the Canadian Football League ' s Edmonton Eskimos . In his first year as a Canadian Football League player , Tucker was the team ' s second - leading receiver with 51 catches for 911 yards . In 2003 , Tucker was named the most valuable player of the 91st Grey Cup with a 132 - yard performance in the championship game . In 2004 , Tucker broke the 1 , 000 yards receiving mark for the first time , racking up 1 , 632 yards for the fourth - highest total in franchise history . Tucker has won two Grey Cups , in 2003 and 2005 , both with the Eskimos . He is a two - time CFL All - Star at wide receiver in 2004 and 2005 . On July 26 , 2008 , Tucker was involved in a helmet - to - helmet hit with Hamilton Tiger - Cats Ryan Glasper that fractured his C6 - C7 vertebrae . Fortunately , his spinal cord was not damaged . However , the injury would ultimately end his career . Coaching career . On January 28 , 2009 , Tucker announced his retirement as a football player , but also announced that he would join the Eskimos coaching staff as their receivers coach . On January 3 , 2012 , it was announced that Tucker had joined the Saskatchewan Roughriders ' coaching staff as their receivers coach . Personal . Tucker is married , and has four daughters . His family lives on a 1300 - acre ( 526 - ha ) ranch in Burleson , Texas .