Justin McCareins

Justin Morgan McCareins (born December 1, 1978) is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Tennessee Titans in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL draft. He also played for the New York Jets. He played college football at Northern Illinois.

Justin McCareins

McCareins in November 2008
No. 86, 81, 19
Position:	Wide receiver
Personal information
Born:	(1978-12-01) December 1, 1978 Itasca, Illinois, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:	215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school:	Naperville North (Naperville, Illinois)
College:	Northern Illinois
NFL draft:	2001 / round: 4 / pick: 124
Career history
Tennessee Titans (2001–2003) New York Jets (2004–2007) Tennessee Titans (2008)
Career highlights and awards
MAC Special Teams Player of the Year (2000)
Career NFL statistics
Receptions: 240 Receiving yards: 3,676 Receiving touchdowns: 16 Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

McCareins attended Peacock Middle School located in Itasca, Illinois. He would first attended Benet Academy in Lisle, Illinois for one semester before transferring to Naperville North High School where he was a teammate of future NFL running back Chris Brown. McCareins played college football at Northern Illinois University. He is the school's all-time leader in receiving yards, and has the longest reception in school history on a 99-yard touchdown catch vs Ball State. He was inducted into the school's athletic Hall of Fame during the Huskies game against Kent State on October 8, 2011.

Professional career

Tennessee Titans

McCareins was selected in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft by the Titans. In 2003, McCareins had a career year with the Tennessee Titans compiling 813 yards receiving along with 7 touchdowns and 47 receptions, adding one rush for 13 yards. He played an important role for the Titans, especially in their 2002-2003 playoff campaign, setting up the game-winning field goal in overtime against the Pittsburgh Steelers by catching 31-yard and 22-yard passes from quarterback Steve McNair to set up Joe Nedney's game-winning field goal. He is also one of only five players since the franchise moved to Tennessee to return a punt for a touchdown.

After the 2003 season, he was traded to the New York Jets.

New York Jets

McCareins signed a 7-year, $30 million contract with the New York Jets after the 2003 season. McCareins had a successful first year with the Jets in 2004, catching 56 passes for 770 yards and 4 touchdowns, which placed him second on the team in receiving. McCareins also had 13 catches for 169 yards in the 2004 playoffs for the Jets. Despite catching only 43 passes in 2005, he still racked up 713 yards for the Jets, his third straight 700+ yard season.

The Jets released him after the 2007 season, the 4th year on his 7-year contract. McCareins finished 26th on the Jets all-time receiving list.

Tennessee Titans (second stint)

On March 12, 2008, McCareins re-joined the Titans on a one-year, $1 million contract after four seasons with the Jets. On September 21, 2008, McCareins caught a 17-yard pass from quarterback Kerry Collins, making Collins only the 15th player in NFL history to pass for over 30,000 yards. McCareins has the 35th most receiving yards in Titans franchise history with 1614 yards and has the 8th highest yards per catch average (minimum 50 catches) in Titans franchise history, averaging 16.4 yards per catch. He would fumble just four times in his four years in Tennessee, and his 10.9 yards per punt return places his 5th in franchise history (minimum 35 returns).

NFL career statistics

Legend
Bold	Career high

Regular season

Year	Team	Games		Receiving
		GP	GS	Tgt	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
2001	TEN	4	1	3	3	88	29.3	36	0
2002	TEN	16	1	48	19	301	15.8	55	2
2003	TEN	16	10	82	47	813	17.3	73	7
2004	NYJ	16	16	90	56	770	13.8	43	4
2005	NYJ	16	16	102	43	713	16.6	45	2
2006	NYJ	16	7	40	23	347	15.1	50	1
2007	NYJ	16	6	46	19	232	12.2	51	0
2008	TEN	14	10	72	30	412	13.7	37	0
		114	67	483	240	3,676	15.3	73	16

Playoffs

Year	Team	Games		Receiving
		GP	GS	Tgt	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
2002	TEN	2	0	4	2	53	26.5	31	0
2003	TEN	2	1	5	4	83	20.8	49	1
2004	NYJ	2	2	24	13	169	13.0	30	0
2006	NYJ	1	1	6	2	31	15.5	20	0
2008	TEN	1	1	6	2	24	12.0	17	0
		8	5	45	23	360	15.7	49	1

Post NFL

McCareins now lives with his family in Whitewright, Texas, following a brief career in law-enforcement.