Ottawa Redblacks wide receiver Jaelon Acklin announced his retirement on Tuesday.
Jaelen Ackin is six foot two and weighs 190 pounds. The 29-year-old from Mountain View, Missouri, made 69 catches for 739 yards, four touchdowns, and four tackles in 16 games in 2024.
The Baltimore Ravens signed Acklin as an undrafted free agent on May 4, 2018. In 2018, he played in one preseason game before suffering an injury and missed the rest of the preseason. The Ravens released him on May 5, 2018. Next, Ackin signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on March 13, 2019.
In his rookie season, Ackin made 58 catches for 708 yards, three touchdowns, and three tackles in 17 games. In 2021, Ackin made 50 catches for 678 yards, four touchdowns, one carry for five yards, and one tackle in 14 games on his way to being named a CFL East All-Star for the first time.
The Ottawa Redblacks signed Acklin on February 9, 2022. In 2022, Acklin made 75 catches for 1,169 yards, two touchdowns, two tackles, and one tackle on special teams in 15 games. He is a two-time CFL East All-Star (2021-22). In 2023, he made 67 catches for 892 yards, one touchdown, one kick return for no yards, and four tackles in 18 games.
Collegiately, Ackin played four seasons at Western Illinois (2014-17) making 105 catches for 1,733 yards, 12 touchdowns, 21 carries for 255 yards, four touchdowns, three kick returns for 25 yards, and four punt returns for four yards in 44 games for the Leathernecks.
