The 2020 NFL Draft is loaded with blue-chip talent at offensive tackle, and Houston’s Josh Jones is among the best of bunch.
A talented, experienced blocker who should hear his name called in the first round, Jones recently spoke exclusively with Draft Wire about why he stayed close to home to play his college football, his experience at the NFL Scouting Combine, and what kind of player he’ll be at the next level.
JM: You spent four impressive years at Houston. You made a lot of starts and gained a lot of experience. You were finally named to the 2019 American Athletic All-Conference Second Team, and it was well deserved. How do you look back on your time at Houston?
JJ: It was a great ride. I had a lot of fun at Houston. We had our ups and downs but it was always exciting. We went from winning The Peach Bowl against Florida State to winning some other big games against teams like Louisville and Lamar Jackson, and Oklahoma and Baker Mayfield. I played in so many great games. We had so many big moments. I was coached by so many great coaches that came through The University of Houston. I was able to cap off my collegiate career with a great senior season. Now I’m blessed to have the opportunity to go to the NFL.
JM: Do you have a favorite moment in a Houston jersey?
JJ: I would say that my favorite moment was when we beat Oklahoma at NRG Stadium. They had so many future NFL’ers playing in that game, guys like Baker Mayfield, Joe Mixon and Dede Westbrook just to name a few. That was a big moment for us. I’ll never forget it.
JM: Richmond, Texas is the place you call home. You had a chance to stay close to home and play in front of family and friends at Houston. What did that opportunity mean to you?
JJ: It meant a lot to play my college ball so close to home. I played in front of my entire family and friends. My grandfather and cousins were able to come to a lot of games. I was able to come here and we won a lot of games. I wanted to show people that The University of Houston could recruit good players from the Houston area to stay in the Houston area. Houston is a big program and we can continue to build from here.
You can do anything you want from right here in Houston. That sentiment extends beyond football. You can achieve your academic dreams here as well. There’s a lot of great jobs to be found in the Houston area. I’m telling you, there’s a lot of opportunity out here.
JM: You’re living proof. You can look back and say you decided to play my college ball at Houston and it worked out for your. You put your faith in your hometown team, and the program rewarded you, right?
JJ: Definitely. You just have to put your best foot forward and commit to it. Once you commit to something in life, you can make anything happen.
JM: What can you tell me about the scheme that you guys ran on offense and what your coaches asked of you?
JJ: We ran a very well-balanced offense this past season. We ran a lot of different plays. I would say that we hung our hat on our guard-tackle pull counter runs. Early in the season, we averaged close to 250 yards a game on the ground. Those runs were paying off for us. That’s pretty much what they asked us to do. We got our backs going early and ran the ball down their throats. The defense had to adapt. My coaches gave me a lot of freedom as far as my performance went. They let me play how I wanted to play. I wanted to play aggressive and dominate my opponent. My coaches gave me the freedom to do that.
JM: What’s your favorite part about playing the offensive tackle position?
JJ: There’s an art form to playing the tackle position. You’re out there on that edge. There’s a fine line between being aggressive but not being overly aggressive. You’re going up against some of the best athletes on the field, the big, strong and fast defensive linemen. It’s me versus you. You’re on an island by yourself. I take a lot of pride in that. I take pride in protecting my quarterback and his blind-side. I have to give him an opportunity to throw the ball.
JM: What was your experience like at the NFL Scouting Combine?
JJ: It was a great experience. The combine is such a great event. I loved every second of it. The days are long but it was such a blessing just to be there. I always watched the combine growing up. I would watch guys run their 40 and picture myself out there one day. I don’t have to picture it anymore. You never get to see all of the hard work that goes into preparing for the combine. I have a whole new respect for that now that I’ve gone through it. You get to be around so many great players. You have to fulfill the media obligations and your medical checks.
You start to build those relationships with some teams in the meeting room. All of this happens before you hit the field to perform under the bright lights. Preparing for the on-field testing is like preparing for a game. It gives you a chance to showcase your skills. It was such a good time. I was blessed to receive an invite.
JM: Taking every aspect of the combine into account, what do you think is the overall impression that you left out there?
JJ: I think I showed them that I’m a great athlete. A lot of teams already knew that about me but the combine gave them a chance to see it up close and personal. They saw how well I moved and how I change direction so effortlessly, how I reach my spots rather quickly. They also got to know me a little better in the meeting room. I had a chance to really show off my knowledge of the game during my interviews.
I had four different offensive line coaches and three different offensive coordinators throughout my time at Houston. They all taught me something different and gave me an opportunity to learn the game from different aspects. That’s one thing I was really able to showcase to the coaches that I met with.
JM: What was the strangest question you were asked at the combine?
JJ: You know, I went in thinking that I was gonna get a bunch of strange questions, but I really didn’t. People warned me about the strange questions, but I didn’t get anything too crazy. The craziest thing that happened to me was somebody asked me if I could tell them a joke.
JM: You’re like the fourth person to tell me that (laughs). Did you have a joke ready to go, or did you freeze up at that request?
JJ: I froze up (laughs). I did not have a joke ready for them. I didn’t prepare a joke for the combine (laughs).
JM: Everybody told me the same thing. They couldn’t think of a joke to save their lives.
JJ: I couldn’t either (laughs). It’s so funny. If I asked you to tell a joke, you could probably come up with a bunch of them. In that very moment, I couldn’t think of anything.
JM: You mentioned how well-balanced you guys were on offense this past season. Do you have a preference when it comes to playing in pass protection or in the run game?
JJ: I may slightly favor the run game. I feel like being able to play in the run game really gets me going. It gets me downhill and gets my pads moving. I get to hit people and dominate them in the run game. That’s how I get myself going. Once I get that first pancake of the game and put somebody on the ground, I start to get into a groove.
JM: Were you able to get any private visits or workouts in before the spread of COVID-19 shut everything down?
JJ: I didn’t get any workouts in, but I was able to go on two top-30 private visits with the Tennessee Titans and Chicago Bears.
JM: I imagine you’ve been meeting with more teams via FaceTime since then?
JJ: Yeah, I’ve had a lot of those (laughs). I have a list for you. I’ve met with the New York Jets, Baltimore Ravens, Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Indianapolis Colts, Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Chargers, New England Patriots, Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles. I just wrapped up one with the Denver Broncos right before you called me. I also have one later today with the Kansas City Chiefs (editor’s note: interview was done on April 8th). I might have missed one or two, but that’s the gist of it.
JM: What’s your favorite way to demoralize your opponent?
JJ: When you dominate a guy on back-to-back plays, that’s very demoralizing for a defensive linemen. If I put him on his back-side two plays in a row, I pancake him and put him on the ground, I know that defensive linemen hate that feeling. He’s angry, he’s hyped up, he’s gonna come out hard on the next play. If I put him on the ground again, they really start to think about what went wrong (laughs). They go into their little turtle shell. It makes them tap out a little bit.
JM: You really embrace those one-on-one match-ups out on the edge. How do you handle speed differently than power?
JJ: You have to trust your steps with speed. It’s all about your feet. I have to trust that my kick-step is gonna get me there. In pass protection, you win 99 percent of your blocks with your feet. It’s all about your feet when you’re up against those speedy edge rushers that can really get off the ball. Trust your steps and win the block with your feet. You wanna punch them at the top of their rush. The timing of that punch is so important.
As far as the bull rush goes, you always wanna stay low and drop your hips. You have to get your head outta there and block with both hands. You have to keep your feet moving.
JM: Do you have a preferred pass set? Do you switch it up throughout the course of a game?
JJ: I like to switch it up. I love to play mind games. I might take a vertical set on one play and short set on the very next play. I like to do the same things with my hands. I might flash my hands or throw him a fake punch. I might throw two hands or throw my outside hand. I love to play mind games with my pass sets and with my hands.
JM: Who are some of the best edge rushers you’ve gone up against?
JJ: The best pass rusher I went up against this past season was Ronnie Perkins from Oklahoma. He wears No. 7 for Oklahoma. He’s a young player with a bright future. He has all the traits to become a big-time pass rusher in the future. I believe that he lead Oklahoma in sacks in 2019. He didn’t get any sacks on me, though (laughs). He’s a young guy, and he’s a great ball player. As long as he stays on the path he’s currently on, he’s gonna be a big-time pass rusher.
JM: You crossed paths with Ed Oliver at Houston. You were obviously a young offensive linemen during his time there. What did practicing and preparing alongside such an elite defensive linemen do for your development?
JJ: That’s my guy right there. We went at it. He was the best defensive linemen in the country. At that time, there was nobody better than Ed Oliver. I had the best defensive linemen in the country on my team. He’s a very, very competitive person. He wanted to compete in everything. He made you wanna match or even surpass his level of competitiveness. We didn’t get to work against each other too much in practice, but there were times he practiced rushing off the edge. We had some great battles, you know I was the best offensive linemen in the country (laughs). It was the best against the best. We went at it a few times.
JM: When a team spends a draft pick on Josh Jones, what kind of guy are they getting?
JJ: They’re getting a competitor, first and foremost. I’m gonna compete in everything I do. They’re gonna get a hard worker that’s gonna come in and do whatever my coaches ask me to do. They’re gonna get a great ball player at the end of the day.
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