Tag: Jonathan Jones

Patriots Super Bowl champ admits some players expected Jerod Mayo firing

Patriots CB Jonathan Jones comments on the team’s reaction to Jerod Mayo’s firing

New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones discussed the overall team reactions from the firing of coach Jerod Mayo when appearing on the “Pats Interference Football Podcast” with Boston Herald’s Andrew Callahan.

Seeing Mayo fired after only one season was surprising to some, but according to Jones, there were also players on the team who expected it to happen.

“Everybody kind of views it their own way,” said Jones. “And so you have a little bit of people who are shocked, some of them say, ‘Hey, I kind of expected that, you know? Just a little bit of everything in-between.”

For a second straight year, the Patriots finished with a 4-13 record. The team struggled on both sides of the ball under Mayo. There were questions regarding the overall roster talent, but even lead personnel executive Eliot Wolf questioned the overall development of young talent.

A new regime is now in place with coach Mike Vrabel leading the way. The Patriots are hopeful that a fresh start under a more experienced head coach can finally get them back on the winning track.

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Patriots CB coach reveals criticized veteran defender played hurt

Jonathan Jones played injured this season, per CB coach Mike Pellegrino

New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones is finally feeling good health-wise after battling injuries throughout the season.

Jones struggled earlier in the year, but he has looked more like himself in recent outings. Last Sunday, he frustrated Buffalo Bills wideout Khalil Shakir by denying him a touchdown reception and helping to hold him to two catches for only 22 yards.

Not many outsiders were aware of the injuries Jones has been working through, and Patriots cornerbacks coach Mike Pellegrino touched on that subject when speaking with media members.

“You guys don’t see it, but Jon was banged up a lot,” Pellegrino said, via ESPN’s Mike Reiss. “He’s finally feeling good. That early part of the year, he was hurting. He was really, really hurting. He fought through it, didn’t complain, didn’t ask for plays off. I have to protect him from himself, because he’s like ‘I’m going’ — that’s the type of competitor he is. An old-school football player.”

Jones, a two-time Super Bowl champion with the Patriots, is set to be a free agent at the end of the season. So continuing to play at a high level could be to his benefit.

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Patriots CB Jonathan Jones opens up about taking accountability

Jonathan Jones spoke on the importance of taking accountability after his struggles against the Rams

New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones, who struggled in the Week 11 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, appeared on “The WEEI Afternoon Show” and spoke about taking accountability.

Jones allowed multiple touchdowns to the Rams, including a 69-yard touchdown to wide receiver Cooper Kupp. Pro Football Focus gave him the worst defensive grade for the entire Patriots team following the game.

“I just pride myself on trying to take accountability,” said Jones. “If I’m going to be the guy to speak in front of the team, I’m going to be the first to tell you when I mess up and when I do my wrongs.”

Jones has been one of the most dependable leaders in the Patriots’ locker room. This was simply a game and situation where the Rams had his number.

He’ll have a chance to bounce back against a talented Miami Dolphins offense on Sunday.

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Patriots CB Jonathan Jones owns up to disappointing performance vs. Rams

Jonathan Jones took the onus for his disappointing performance

New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones was not happy with his performance on Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams. He owned up to it in a short message to fans.

“I owe NEP better than today. Keep grinding,” Jones posted on social media.

It was a difficult day overall with him giving up two touchdowns in the game. The biggest touchdown he gave up came when Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford threw a 69-yard pass to wide receiver Cooper Kupp during an all-out blitz attempt.

The touchdown extended the Rams’ lead to 21-10 following the extra point. New England ended up losing the game by a 28-22 margin.

Jones’ disappointing day was a microcosm of what has been an inconsistent year for the Patriots’ defense overall. They won’t have long to hang their heads with a clash with the Miami Dolphins next on the schedule in Week 12.

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Video catches fired-up Patriots CB Jonathan Jones after win over Bears

Jonathan Jones delivers a fiery speech to the team

New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones was fired up after the team’s 19-3 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

Jones played a big part in the victory by recording five tackles on the day, bringing his season total to 36 on the year.

The defensive unit was a major key in the victory. They recorded nine sacks and 13 hits on Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams. They swarmed Williams from start to finish to secure their third victory of the season.

In a video posted on the team’s social media page, Jones could be seen addressing the team after Patriots coach Jerod Mayo handed out a couple of game balls.

“Coach said it—it’s playing complementary football,” said Jones. “All three phases: offense, defense, special teams. It ain’t no special victory how you win in this league. It’s simple.

“It’s sticking together and playing complementary football. We keep doing that, put our head down, and we’re going to go some places. Hey, stack some wins. Stack some wins.”

Veterans like Jones are important on the defensive side of the ball, as the team undergoes a rebuild.

Jones has been a constant in the Patriots’ organization since his arrival in 2016. He has seen the ups and downs of multiple rebuild attempts. He knows what it takes to win, and the Patriots certainly did that on Sunday.

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Two Patriots defenders reportedly generating trade interest

The Patriots have reportedly received calls on multiple players, including two veteran defenders

The New England Patriots have reportedly been fielding interest for multiple players ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline. Not everyone is for sale on the Patriots’ roster, but there are two defensive players in particular generating interest, per Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer.

According to Breer, cornerbacks Jonathan Jones and Marco Wilson have both generated interest from NFL teams.

Jones has been a key veteran player in the Patriots’ secondary since Tom Brady was still playing football in New England. He has 31 tackles and a forced fumble on the season.

Wilson was claimed off waivers by the Patriots last December. He has 10 tackles and a pass deflection on the year.

Breer wrote:

Meanwhile, at corner, there’s been interest in Jonathan Jones, but they aren’t keen on moving him, based on his role as a team leader. Marco Wilson would be a more realistic trade target for other teams at that position.

The Patriots have been receiving calls about players on both sides of the football. The receiving unit has generated interest as well, particularly with Tyquan Thornton and K.J. Osborn.

It will be interesting to see which players, if any, get moved ahead of the deadline. The Patriots are in the process of rebuilding, and that could make several players expendable.

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Patriots CB takes a strong stance on post-game social media use

Jonathan Jones explains why he isn’t a fan of players running to social media after a game

New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones strongly opposed the players’ use of social media during the season.

This comes after rookie wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk used Instagram to post a cryptic message following the Patriots’ loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 7.

When appearing on “The WEEI Afternoon Show,” Jones explained why social media can be a problem during the season.

“I don’t think there’s any space where running to social media after a game—whether win, lose, or draw—that it really does anything good for you or the team, especially when it’s bringing about division,” said Jones. “Just understanding that when you speak, sometimes you’re speaking for the whole team and not just yourself. Guys need to recognize that.”

Frustration has seemingly grown in the locker room with the Patriots dropping six straight losses. However, it’s never good when it spills out publicly on social media.

It seems the Patriots are spiraling right now, both on and off the field.

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Patriots veteran CB doubles down on Jerod Mayo’s comments

Jonathan Jones responded to Jerod Mayo’s comments

New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones had a strong response to Jerod Mayo’s initial comments about the team being “soft” after the Week 7 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Mayo’s comments came after the Patriots fell to 1-6 on the season after a 32-16 loss in London. He later clarified his comments by saying the team was “playing soft.”

The Patriots didn’t fare well across the pond in a game where the defense gave up 171 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the ground. They also failed to get a single sack.

“That’s his opinion,” Jones said, when appearing on the “WEEI Afternoon Show,” as transcribed by NESN.com’s Adam London. “I always take the opinions of what our coaches say to heart. The opposite of a soft team is a tough team and we pride ourselves around here on being able to stop the run, run the ball and cover kicks.

“If you look at our last game, we didn’t do any of those. So, I don’t think we have any space to call ourselves a tough team based on our last performance. We weren’t able to stop the run, we weren’t able to run the ball and we weren’t able to cover kicks.”

We’ll see how the defense responds to the perception laid out there. They’ll have to continue to find a way to do so without star defensive tackle Christian Barmore and linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley.

And they’ll have to do so against an angry and desperate New York Jets team on Sunday.

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Drake Maye relays message Patriots’ veteran gave team after loss

Drake Maye revealed a message veteran CB Jonathan Jones gave the team after Sunday’s loss

New England Patriots veteran cornerback Jonathan Jones sent a message to the team after Sunday’s 32-16 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Many, including Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye, received the message.

Maye had another solid game when making his second official NFL start. He went 26-of-37 passing for 276 yards and two touchdowns. That brought his season total statistics to 541 passing yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions.

He was a bright spot on a tough day overall for the entire Patriots team on Sunday.

“Jon Jones gave a speech after the game, saying, ‘You’ve got to find it. We have to find something.'” Maye said, per a team-provided video, as transcribed by NESN.com’s Keagan Stiefel. “What we’re doing is not good enough. We’ve got to man up.”

It remains to be seen how the Patriots will respond after losing their sixth straight game. They still have time to turn things around, but they’ll need significant improvements on both sides of the ball.

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Bengals urged to trade for CB ahead of NFL’s trade deadline

Should the Bengals follow through on this trade idea?

The Cincinnati Bengals haven’t sounded like a team in a rush to seek help at the NFL trade deadline after the season-ending injury to Dax Hill.

But should Duke Tobin and the Bengals front office want to look, help might just be there.

One such name might be New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones, with Bleacher Report suggesting the Bengals reach out:

“The Bengals’ only hope to turn things around and contend for the playoffs this season is to find a fix on defense. There are some things they can do schematically, but there might just have to be better personnel. Tre’Davious White has had a rough go of it with the Rams, but so has Cam Taylor-Britt. The 25-year-old is giving up a 126.1 passer rating when targeted.”

If the Bengals are going to make the rare move to give up assets in exchange for an outside player via trade, it will likely come in the form of an expiring contract like Jones (though that $6.1 million cap hit makes it unsavory).

Now 31 years old, Jones wouldn’t be costly to acquire via trade and would provide some quality veteran depth.

But for better or worse, the Bengals have been content to wait on D.J. Ivey’s return from injury to bolster the boundary spots behind Cam Taylor-Britt and DJ Turner.

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