Career changes aren’t new to Jake Paul. He started as a vine creator around 2013, then a stint as an actor for Disney Channel became part of his life, and an abrupt transition to professional boxing, along with becoming a promoter, left many shocked. Yet, Paul still appears hungry. And now, ‘The Problem Child’ has his eyes set on football as his next potential career plan.

“I do have NFL aspirations,” said Paul on The a16z Show. “After boxing, I want to play slot receiver. And I think to get that experience in college first would be good. So, I could walk onto the Stanford team. I’m being serious, though… I was originally thinking I’ll just go straight to the Cleveland Browns or Dallas Cowboys. But they’re probably going to want to see me play first. And so, it might be better if I start off in college and have a little bit of an advantage over the younger, not as big kids, before going into the NFL.”

The 29-year-old YouTuber-turned-boxer is a die-hard fan of his hometown football teams: the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Cleveland Browns. Paul also signed a social media and marketing deal with the Browns in December 2022. The deal was primarily a marketing and promotional move for both sides, leveraging the former YouTuber’s massive online reach.

“Excited to be on the team,” wrote Paul on X. “This is a dream come true.”

Meanwhile, when it comes to the Dallas Cowboys, there is no direct relation to Paul. However, his boxing match against Mike Tyson took place at the AT&T Stadium (the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium) in November 2024.

On top of that, Paul reportedly played two years of varsity high school football as a wide receiver and linebacker in Ohio before pivoting to social media stardom. But ‘The Problem Child’ is no longer just a social media sensation. In 2016, Paul became one of the first major internet creators to transition to traditional television. He starred as Dirk Mann on the Disney Channel sitcom Bizaardvark alongside pop sensation Olivia Rodrigo. And now, he is a standout professional boxer.

In 2018, Jake Paul made his amateur debut against Deji Olatunji and won via TKO in the fifth round. Two years later, he transitioned into professional boxing, facing AnEsonGib. But when Paul started facing former UFC fighters such as Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley, Anderson Silva, and Nate Diaz, he garnered significant attention.

And today, Paul has already faced standout boxers like Mike Tyson (won via a unanimous decision) and Anthony Joshua (who defeated Paul via KO). Training for these fights also changed Paul’s athleticism. Be it endurance, strength, agility, or reflexes, the YouTuber-turned-boxer improved himself on all fronts.

However, not everyone from the league has faith in Jake Paul. Super Bowl LV champion and former wide receiver Antonio Brown believes otherwise.

“Dude would get f**king rocked,” wrote Brown on X.

Hearing about Paul’s preference to become a slot receiver in the NFL pushed analyst Jacob Infante to share a similar assessment to Brown, adding, “With all due respect, Jake Paul, what the hell are you thinking?”

The PFN analyst continued, “Maybe this is just a ploy to get some views, and obviously it’s working,” Infante said. “But you’re looking at a really difficult jump to the pros for somebody who didn’t play college football.

“He’s a good athlete,” added Infante. “But the fact of the matter is, wide receiver, slot receiver factors in so much more than just being athletic. You need to have great hands, you need to have the route-running IQ, you need the footwork, you need the ability to diagnose different coverage looks and identify how to run your route from there.”

An NFL slot receiver like Amon-Ra St. Brown of the Detroit Lions typically wins in the first 5 yards of a play. St. Brown thrives on an explosive first step that freezes defensive backs. Because Paul (220 pounds) carries heavy muscle built to throw punches, he lacks the specific fast-twitch muscle fibers required to decelerate and accelerate instantly on the field.

Then comes the speed factor. Paul’s 40-yard dash time of 4.74 seconds would make him one of the slowest receivers in the NFL. Meanwhile, the likes of Xavier Worthy of the Kansas City Chiefs hold the all-time NFL Scouting Combine record with an official 4.21-second 40-yard dash.

However, nothing is official as of now, as Paul has only revealed the next career path that he plans to choose after boxing.