Fred Jackson was back in Buffalo last week wearing a familiar number.
This time, No. 22 belonged to his son.
The former Buffalo Bills running back, who became a fan favorite during nine seasons with the Bills, was supporting his son Braeden while touring the new Highmark Stadium with former teammate Marshawn Lynch. Jackson wore an Iowa hoodie with "Jackson 22" across the back.
Two days later, Braeden Jackson gave Bills fans another No. 22 to root for.
The 20-year-old Iowa running back rushed for 125 yards and scored the first two touchdowns of his college career Saturday in a 55-0 victory over Northern Iowa, delivering the first breakout performance of a career beginning to look a little like his father's.
Both Jacksons had to earn their opportunities
the hard way.
Fred Jackson went from Division III Coe College to indoor football, NFL Europe and eventually became the third-leading rusher in Bills history.
Braeden Jackson arrived at Iowa as a lightly recruited walk-on who didn't play a snap during his first season.
"Obviously, my dad was in a very similar spot," Braeden said. "He was a D-III guy, undrafted. So that road isn't unknown to me."
Fred Jackson's son breaks out for Iowa football
Braeden Jackson didn't have many college options despite putting up huge numbers at Ankeny Centennial in Iowa.
He rushed for 1,402 yards and 22 touchdowns as a senior, finishing with a school-record 1,964 all-purpose yards and 27 total touchdowns. He was a first-team all-state selection.
His choices came down to Iowa Western Community College or walking on at Iowa.
That sounds familiar.
Fred Jackson didn't receive a college offer coming out of high school in Texas. He landed at Coe College, a Division III school in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where he became an All-American.
Fred encouraged his son to take the longer route at Iowa rather than attend junior college in hopes of eventually transferring there.
Braeden redshirted in 2025 and didn't appear in a game.
Just getting started, Deuces!! #proudpops https://t.co/J9uXBEBGvT
— Fred Jackson (@Fred22Jackson) September 20, 2026
His debut came in Iowa's season opener against Northern Illinois this year. He rushed three times for 30 yards, including a 24-yard run. His opportunity grew against Northern Iowa with running backs Kamari Moulton and L.J. Phillips unavailable.
Braeden caught a touchdown pass from quarterback Hank Brown for the first score of his college career and later broke loose for a 62-yard touchdown run. Jackson finished with 125 yards rushing and 149 yards from scrimmage.
"You guys saw it: He's electric," Iowa running back Xavier Williams said. "He hasn't really got much opportunity, but he did today and he showed why he belongs out there. He's a really good running back."
There's some evidence behind the electric part.
Braeden was a standout sprinter in high school. He was named Mr. Iowa Track, won four state championships and was a Drake Relays champion. He holds his high school's record in the 200 meters at 21.54 seconds and was part of state-record 4x100 and 4x200 relay teams.
Fred Jackson was a state-qualifying sprinter in Texas before beginning the football journey that eventually brought him to Buffalo.
Braeden Jackson grew up around the Buffalo Bills
Braeden's connection to Buffalo goes back further than the name on the back of his jersey.
He was born Sept. 19, 2006, eight months after Fred Jackson first signed with the Bills.
Braeden spent much of his childhood watching his father play in Orchard Park. After home games, Fred would bring him down from the stands and into the Bills locker room.
The education went beyond Sundays.
"He taught me, from a very young age, how to watch film," Braeden said. "Pick up on different linebackers' tendencies or seeing what the defense is trying to do. Really just teaching me all types of things about football."
Braeden still talks with his father after games to get Fred's perspective on things he might have missed.
"That's one thing that I feel like I have an advantage, just because I can still reach out to him as that resource," Braeden said. "He can help me with things that he sees."
After Coe, Jackson went undrafted in 2003. He played indoor football for the Sioux City Bandits, spent a season with the Rhein Fire in NFL Europe and was on the Bills practice squad before finally making his NFL debut in 2007.
He stayed in Buffalo for nine seasons. He stuck around so long that in the 2015 season, he was the oldest running back in the NFL.
Fred Jackson
— That Guy Rocked NFL (@NFLRocked) September 16, 2026
That guy rocked. pic.twitter.com/LTbIDu1uRi
Jackson rushed for 5,646 yards with the Bills, third-most in franchise history behind Thurman Thomas and O.J. Simpson. He finished his NFL career with 5,746 rushing yards and 30 rushing touchdowns.
Braeden has a considerably shorter journey ahead of him to reach Iowa's starting lineup. But he hasn't forgotten how long it took his dad to get where he wanted to go.
"Even throughout my whole recruiting process, he spoke life into me and really just told me to keep going and it's going to work out eventually," Braeden said. "You might just have to put your head down and keep working, working, working. But you're going to get there."
Fred Jackson returns to Buffalo with Marshawn Lynch
The younger Jackson's breakout came at the end of a memorable week for his father.
Fred Jackson returned to Orchard Park ahead of the Bills' home opener against the Detroit Lions at the new Highmark Stadium.
Jackson and former Bills teammate Marshawn Lynchtoured the new stadium and the demolition site of the old one for Lynch's "N Yo City" segment on Prime Video's "Thursday Night Football."
The former teammates reminisced about their time together in Buffalo and joked about who was responsible for Lynch eventually leaving the Bills.
Braeden's breakout came on his 20th birthday.
"Obviously, I have a chip on my shoulder any time I step out on the field," Braeden said. "Being underrecruited, you kind of carry that with you. I just want to show the world, I want to show everyone what I can do anytime I step out there."
He's following his father's path. But he doesn't necessarily want to finish in the same place.
"My dad had an amazing NFL career and I'm proud of him," Braeden said. "Obviously, all of my goals are to surpass what he did. However many yards he had in the NFL, I want to have more than that. However many touchdowns he had, I want to have more than that, and he knows that."
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Bills legend Fred Jackson's son follows father's football footsteps
