and five interceptions. He rushed for 271 yards and two touchdowns on 95 carries. College statistics Professional career 2006 NFL Draft Vikings scouts and personnel had reportedly been watching him closely in secret over his senior season, particularly liking his performance in the East-West Shrine Game. They were also impressed by his workout at the scouting combine (among the top 5 quarterbacks in ball speed and the 40-yard dash). Several NFL teams, including the Vikings, had arranged secret workouts with him too. Jackson was selected with the last pick in the 2nd round (64th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft, while he was projected to go much later, in the sixth or seventh round. The Vikings traded two 3rd round picks to get the 2nd round pick with which they drafted Jackson, fearing he might get picked sooner than anticipated. Jackson's early selection caused some surprise, as he was the 5th quarterback taken and the 1st Division I-AA player selected (the previous I-AA quarterback drafted was Spergon Wynn in 2000). He was also the first quarterback from Alabama State to be drafted into the NFL since Ricky Jones in 1992. Even Jackson was surprised by the pick, saying, "I was more focused on [getting drafted in] the third round and even that was stretching it". Most pre-draft publications did not even have him listed as one of the top 10 eligible quarterbacks, while he was the 5th selected. On July 26, 2006, Jackson signed a four-year deal with Minnesota, including a $1 million signing bonus. Vikings coach Brad Childress was quoted days before the draft as saying he was interested in finding a "developmental guy", a "diamond in the rough" quarterback of the future, raw talent he could teach a system. The day after the draft, Childress was quoted by the St. Paul Pioneer Press as saying: "I think you judge quarterbacks a little bit differently...When you see what you want at the quarterback position, you need to go get it. And that's exactly what I see with Tarvaris Jackson is a guy that's a piece of clay, that has all the skills in terms of, No. 1, what's he look like throwing the football?...He's got a great throwing motion; he's athletic. He has all those things that we're looking for, and he's wired right. That's important for a quarterback. I think he's a flatline guy. I think he's a