J.C. Jackson’s season was one of the bright spots from a tough 7-9 season for the New England Patriots, who got knocked out of playoff contention in Week 15 and who finished below-.500 for the first time since 2000.
The Patriots cornerback finished the season with nine interceptions and two forced fumbles. That’s a Patriots’ record with 11 turnovers on the season.
“That don’t mean (expletive), to be honest,” Jackson told reporters on Sunday after the team’s Week 17 win over the New York Jets.
Meanwhile, he wanted to clarify: this Week 17 win — even if it had zero implications beyond pride — was not meaningless.
“What do you mean, how can someone say the game doesn’t matter? I don’t get that, I don’t understand why people say that,” Jackson said.
The only thing the game impacted was the Patriots’ draft position. Their win ensured New England wouldn’t pick any higher than 14th overall. But that didn’t stop the Patriots from giving full effort. Jackson, for example, provided a game-changing interception. When he caught the interception, New England was tied — but after the interception, they scored 14 unanswered points. Jackson finished with the second-most interceptions in the NFL behind Dolphins cornerback Xavien Howard (10).
“Like you said, the ninth pick of the season, I feel like I could have had more than that,” Jackson said of his interception total. “But that’s a hell of a season, to have nine picks. I’ve just got to continue to grow and get better for the 2021 season.”
That kind of season should draw interest for Jackson as he enters restricted free agency. New England will have a tough decision on what round tender they place on Jackson. They can likely retain him by placing a first-round tender on the cornerback. If New England wants to potentially get a draft pick in return for Jackson, they could place a second-round tender to see if anyone would be willing to pay Jackson and give up the pick.
Any interested team will like what Jackson had to say about his upside.
“I feel like I’m not even at my highest level yet,” Jackson said. “I’ve still got some room to improve and have some things I need to work on.”
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