Jordan attended Chandler High School in Chandler, Arizona. He played both tight end and defensive end. He caught 54 passes for 804 yards and 13 touchdowns as a junior. As a senior, he caught 13 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns in six games before the remainder of his season was curtailed while recovering from a serious off-the-field accident. He was a four-star prospect, and was ranked as the 10th overall tight end in the country by Scout.com. In track & field, Jordan was one of the state's top performers in the 110 and 300-meter hurdles. He recorded times of 14.24 seconds and 38.27 seconds in those events respectively. At the 2008 5A I Fiesta Region, he won the shot put and placed fourth in the long jump.
College career
Jordan attended the University of Oregon, where he played for the Oregon Ducks football team from 2008 to 2012. He redshirted in 2008. In 2010, he switched from tight end to defensive end. He finished the season with 33 tackles and two sacks. As a first-year starter in 2011, Jordan was a first-team All-Pac-12 Conference selection after recording 42 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, and 7.5 sacks. He was also named a first-team All-Pac-12 selection in 2012, after recording 44 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, and 5 sacks. On February 23, 2013, Jordan announced that he would undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum. His recovery time required 3 to 4 months.
College statistics
Professional career
Jordan was selected in the first round, third overall in the 2013 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins, who traded up to acquire the pick from the Oakland Raiders. He became the highest selected Oregon Duck since Joey Harrington in 2002.
Miami Dolphins
2013 season
Jordan appeared in all 16 games in his rookie year of 2013 making 26 tackles, two sacks, and two passes defended.
2014 season
On July 3, 2014, Jordan was suspended for the first four games of the 2014 season for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing substance policy. On September 19, 2014, Jordan again violated the drug policy and was given an additional two games to add for the suspension.
2015 season
On April 28, 2015, Jordan was suspended for the entire 2015 season for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing substance policy for a third time. According to sources, Jordan didn't fail a drug test; however, it was determined that one of his test samples was diluted, which is considered a strike.
2016 season
Jordan was conditionally reinstated by the NFL on July 29, 2016, ending what was a 15-month suspension. The conditions stipulated in the reinstatement include he would be able to return to the team for training camp, establishment of treatment resources for Jordan in Miami prior to his being allowed to play in any preseason games, a meeting with the NFL prior to being allowed to play in Week 1 of the regular season, and an in-season meeting with the NFL prior to a full reinstatement. Still, Jordan did not play a down at all during 2016. On March 31, 2017, Jordan was released by the Dolphins after failing a physical.
On April 11, 2017, Jordan was signed by the Seattle Seahawks. He was placed on the reserve/non-football injury list to start the season with a knee injury. On November 8, the Seahawks activated Jordan off reserves to the active roster. He played in five games of the season, finishing with 10 tackles and 4 sacks. On March 14, 2018, the Seahawks placed a first-round restricted free agent tender on Jordan. On June 7, Jordan underwent knee surgery, described as a cleanup. On May 14, 2019, Jordan was suspended for 10 games due to usage of Adderall. Jordan admitted that he was taking Adderall to alleviate his ADHD, but his therapeutic use exemption expired, and therefore, his appeal was declined.
Oakland Raiders
On November 9, 2019, Jordan signed with the Oakland Raiders. He was immediately placed on the reserve/suspended list to finish out his 10-game suspension. He was reinstated from suspension on November 12.
