Chicago Bears wide receiver Velus Jones Jr.’s first NFL reception produced the former Saraland High School star’s first NFL touchdown.

Jones’ touchdown was more of a run than a reception. With Jones already in motion at the snap, Chicago quarterback Justin Fields shoveled the football to Jones as he passed in front of him, and the wide receiver sweep right end to score from 9 yards out against the Minnesota Vikings.

Jones’ touchdown allowed the Bears to reduce Minnesota’s lead to 21-16 with 10:24 left in the third quarter.

A third-round draft pick from Tennessee on April 29, Jones missed the first three games of the season because of a hamstring injury.

Jones made his NFL debut in Chicago’s 20-12 loss to the New York Giants on Oct. 2. He returned two kickoffs for 44 yards and two punts for 19 yards in his first regular-season appearance.

Jones shared the SEC Special Teams Player of the Year Award for the 2021 season with Alabama wide receiver Jameson Williams.

Jones caught 62 passes for 807 yards and seven touchdowns, averaged 27.3 yards per kickoff return and 15.1 yards per punt return (the second-best figure in the nation) in the 2021 season, when he was the All-SEC return specialist.

Jones’ 2,973 career kickoff-return yards accumulated in three seasons at Southern Cal and two at Tennessee rank 14th in NCAA FBS history.

Jones earned ASWA All-State recognition in 2014 and 2015 at Saraland. In his junior season, Jones had 51 receptions for 1,118 yards and nine touchdowns as the Spartans reached the AHSAA Class 6A championship game. As a senior, Jones had 48 receptions for 945 yards and 10 touchdowns, ran for two touchdowns and had two more TDs on special teams.

At the NFL Scouting Combine in March, Jones ran the second-fastest 40-yard dash in 2022 at 4.31 seconds. Jones’ time was the fourth-fastest by a player from an Alabama high school or college this century.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.