Tag: Maurice Jones-Drew

Watch: Son of Jaguars legend goes 64 yards for first varsity TD

Watch: Son of Jaguars legend goes 64 yards for first varsity TD

Like father, like son.

With the same Concord (Calif.) De La Salle program Maurice Jones-Drew never lost a regular-season varsity game in the early 2000s, class of 2027 running back Duece Jones-Drew made his presence known in his debut appearance with the squad Friday.

The younger Jones-Drew broke off a 64-yard touchdown against Sacramento (Calif.) Grant Union, the first carry of his varsity career, while his dad, an eight-year former Jacksonville Jaguars running back, watched from the sidelines as De La Salle’s quarterbacks coach.

It was one of his nine attempts on the night, going for 100 yards and a two-point conversion to pair with his six-point score, per Sports Illustrated.

“It was a pretty emotional thing, him living his dream on your high school field,” the older Jones-Drew said after the game. “I’ll probably cry tonight.”

The 5-foot-8, 160-pound Duece Jones-Drew has yet to receive a scholarship offer as a sophomore in high school, but big gains like his rush Friday night and the recognition that comes with his name could change that reality sooner rather than later.

Maurice Jones-Drew, a former All-American at UCLA, beat the odds as a similarly undersized running back prospect.

After scoring 39 total touchdowns, surpassing 3,300 yards from scrimmage and averaging over 23 yards per punt and kick return with the Bruins, Jones-Drew became Jacksonville’s second-round NFL draft pick in 2006 and went on to produce one of the most electric tenures in Jaguars history.

A two-time First-Team All-Pro and three-time Pro Bowler with the club, Jones-Drew rushed 1,804 times for 8,071 yards (4.5 yards per carry) and 68 touchdowns in eight seasons with Jacksonville.

He also caught 346 passes for 2,944 yards and 11 touchdowns, and scored twice over 79 kickoff returns, in which he averaged 26 yards per attempt.

Where does Saquon Barkley rank among all 32 starting RBs heading into 2024 NFL season

Philadelphia Eagles star Saquon Barkley lands at No. 5 on a list of the top 32 starting running backs in the NFL

Saquon Barkley is on a mission this season. As we sit just hours away from the Eagles’ second preseason game of the summer, the dynamic running back patiently awaits his debut in Philadelphia’s explosive offense.

Barkley will run behind the best offensive line since he entered the NFL, and the skill position groups surrounding him will ensure that he sees a light seven or man box. 2024 allows the former Penn State star to log a 1,500-yard rushing season.

In Maurice Jones-Drew’s running back rankings ahead of the 2024 NFL season, Barkley landed in the top five at No. 5.

It’s going to take a game or two to get used to seeing Saquon in an Eagles uniform, but it should be exciting from the jump. The expectations are high for a rushing attack that features Barkley, who put up 1,200-plus scrimmage yards in four of six seasons with the Giants, and dual-threat quarterback Jalen Hurts. I know there are a lot of mouths to feed in an offense that also boasts A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert, but Barkley is a special player whom the Eagles know well. He’ll get plenty of opportunities.

Nothing helps a quarterback regain his swagger like a talented, dual-threat running back who can be a home run threat on all three downs.

Barkley played six seasons with the Eagles’ NFC East rival. In 74 career games with New York, the 27-year-old rushed 1,201 times for 5,211 yards and 35 touchdowns. Barkley was also a weapon in the passing game, tallying 288 receptions for 2,100 yards and 12 touchdowns.

He’ll now give Jalen Hurts and the Eagles a dynamic, three-down running back that should flourish in Kellen Moore’s offensive system while opening things up for A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Dallas Goedert.

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CB Jarrian Jones: Playing for Jaguars ‘a dream of mine’

Jacksonville third-round pick, cornerback Jarrian Jones: “Playing for the Jaguars has been a dream of mine.”

Roughly 250 individual dreams come true around this time each year, when prospects receive calls from pro teams about their imminent selection in the 2024 NFL draft.

For Florida State cornerback Jarrian Jones, two dreams were realized late Friday night, when his name was called by Jacksonville with the No. 96 overall pick in the third round.

“Man,” Jones exclaimed to reporters in his post-selection press conference, “when I saw that number pop up, I was so happy because playing for the Jaguars has been a dream of mine.”

From Magee, Miss., teams like New Orleans, Atlanta, Dallas, even AFC South rivals Tennessee and Houston geographically make a bit more sense for Jones to have been devoted to in his youth. What made the Jaguars his favorite team?

“Growing up I was a big Maurice Jones-Drew guy,” Jones revealed. “Big Maurice Jones-Drew guy, like I was a superfan of him. I watched just about every game that he played.”

Jacksonville’s second-round pick in 2006, Jones-Drew began his time with the Jaguars when Jones was five years old and received numerous All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors throughout Jones’ formative years around the game of football.

Jones recalled regularly playing the Madden video game series with Jones-Drew as his player of choice — “he used to go for like 200 yards every game I played,” Jones said — and frequently observing Jones-Drew plow over defenders in the A-gap of the trenches on Sundays.

“I had the t-shirt that had MJD on the back,” Jones shared. “I was kind of one of those fanatics.”

Jones’ feelings for the Jaguars only strengthened during the 2016 NFL draft, when Jacksonville took former Florida State cornerback Jalen Ramsey with its first-round selection.

In just over three seasons with the club, Ramsey earned one All-Pro and two Pro Bowl nods, setting a standard for performance at his position for Jones. The two former Seminoles have bonded over the years with the older defensive backs offering the young prospect tips of the trade.

“I definitely idolized Jalen, of course coming from Florida State we kind of played in the same defense,” Jones said. “When Jalen went there from Florida State, I was tuned into every game. Him playing inside, outside, just what he brought to the game.

“I kind of fell in love with the Jaguars while Jalen was there, [and] especially while Maurice Jones-Drew was there.”

With a pressing need at cornerback, Jacksonville made Jones its third pick of the 2024 NFL draft after taking wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. and defensive lineman Maason Smith Jr., both from LSU, in the first and second rounds, respectively.

In five seasons of college football, one with Mississippi State and four with Florida State, Jones recorded 96 tackles with 7.5 for loss, five interceptions, 12 pass breakups and two fumble recoveries over 55 games and 29 starts.

Day 3 of the 2024 NFL draft will begin at noon ET on Saturday. Jacksonville has six selections remaining.

Maurice Jones-Drew calls for UCLA to hire Chris Horton as head coach

Maurice Jones-Drew wants Chris Horton as the next UCLA coach.

There are many opinions, thoughts, and predictions regarding the UCLA Bruins coaching search.

However, one interesting one that came up is from former UCLA RB Maurice Jones-Drew. Shortly after Chip Kelly left for Ohio State, Jones-Drew gave his choice to be the next UCLA head coach: Chris Norton from the Baltimore Ravens.

Here’s what Jones-Drew wrote on X:

UCLA needs to Hire Chris horton of the baltimore Ravens. He’s a bruin it’s that simple.

Horton played college football at UCLA and was drafted in the 7th round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He was only in the NFL for a few seasons between practice squads and active rosters.

After that, he spent two seasons as a Quality control assistant with UCLA in 2012 and 2013 and has been with the Baltimore Ravens ever since. He spent his first few years as an assistant special teams coach before taking over as special teams coordinator in Baltimore beginning in 2019.

Horton isn’t a name that has circulated much, but Jones-Drew advocating for him is certainly worth consideration.

Maurice Jones-Drew ranks Alvin Kamara as 30th-best running back in NFL

Maurice Jones-Drew ranks every running back to start a game in 2023.

NFL Network analyst Maurice Jones-Drew ranked all 72 running backs who started a game this season, and the New Orleans Saints had three of them: Alvin Kamara, Jamaal Williams and Tony Jones Jr. (Kendre Miller didn’t qualify.)

The Saints running game wasn’t strong this season, so it should come as no surprise that no New Orleans player ranks high on the list. Kamara is the first Saint to make the list at No. 30. His season was limited in the running game, and New Orleans also failed to deliver on preseason hype that Kamara would return to his previous glory as a pass catcher.

Williams is significantly farther down the list, in the bottom third. There’s a reason the players decided to defy Dennis Allen in order to get Williams a touchdown in the season finale. He struggled to find his footing in the offense.

Jones, meanwhile, started for the Saints in Week 3. He later became an Arizona Cardinal and now finds himself as the 64th-ranked running back by Jones-Drew. The Saints will be hoping for more out of the group in 2024.

Alvin Kamara ranked a bottom-10 running back by NFL analyst

Maurice Jones-Drew ranked Alvin Kamara as a bottom-10 starting running back after posting some of the lowest averages of his career in 2023:

New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara didn’t have his best season in 2023, finishing with some of the worst numbers of his pro career. Due to this, NFL Network’s Maurice Jones-Drew ranked Kamara as the 26th running back in the league out of 32 starters, which is still an eye-opening statement.

But here’s what Jones-Drew wrote to back up his claim:

“Alvin Kamara had one of his worst statistical seasons in 2023, in part due to his early-season suspension, and because he missed the final week with an ankle injury. Even when he was on the field, he wasn’t all that efficient in the run game, posting his second sub-4.0 yard-per-carry mark for a season in his career. Another factor: The offense spent a lot of 2023 out of sync and struggled to sustain drives.”

Jones-Drew is correct to point out Kamara’s missed games while also pointing out Kamara’s subpar averages. Kamara averaged his second-fewest yards per carry (3.9) and posted the lowest yards per catch (6.2) of his career. There hasn’t been a lot going right around Kamara and it has significantly hindered Kamara’s production. Some of that is to be expected as he ages and the wear and tear of life in the NFL stacks up, but some of the blame should go to his coaches’ uncreative play calling, too.

Hopefully 2024 can be a bounce-back year for Kamara. He’s working with a quarterback who is all too eager to throw to his running backs in Derek Carr and that alone should help him get more touches than we’ve seen as of late. With that said, it’s also important for the Saints to invest in a better backup plan in case Kamara continues to regress or miss more time.

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NFL Network analyst predicts Alvin Kamara will catch 20 passes vs. Lions

Maurice Jones-Drew’s Week 13 bold prediction is Alvin Kamara will be the third NFL player to ever catch 20 passes in a game.

Former NFL running back and current NFL Network analyst Maurice Jones-Drew predicted New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara will catch 20 passes on Sunday against the Detroit Lions. This was a part of the network’s Week 13 bold predictions and that is definitely a bold call.

Only two players in league history have ever reached 20 catches in a game (Terrell Owens set the single-game record with 20 against the Bears in 2000; Brandon Marshall broke that record with 21 in a loss to the Colts in 2009). This likely won’t happen if only because Kamara will still be tasked with also running the ball.

Kamara’s career-high in catches and combined touches are 15 and 31. He’d have to eclipse that to make Jones-Drew’s bold prediction come true. Whether it comes true aside, his prediction speaks to the workload Kamara might have to see on Sunday. He caught 13 and 12 passes in games earlier this season, and injuries at wide receiver might force Derek Carr to funnel even more targets Kamara’s way.

Jamaal Williams hasn’t seen much work since returning from injured reserve and the Saints are down some receivers. 20 catches might be extreme, but the offense very well could run through Alvin Kamara versus the Lions.

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Ravens snap count vs. Chargers: Breakdown, observations from 20-10 win in Week 12

We’re looking at the snap counts and playing time percentage for the Baltimore Ravens in their 20-10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers

The Ravens are 9-3 and back atop the AFC after a hard-fought, 20-10 win over the Chargers at SoFi Stadium on Sunday night.

Baltimore’s defense was dominant, holding the Chargers to 279 yards of offense on 69 plays. Justin Herbert and company went 7-15 on third downs and 1-2 in the red zone.

With the Ravens on a much-needed bye, here’s the snap count and playing time percentages from Week 12.

Ravens enter bye week with the best record in AFC after 20-10 win over Chargers

We’re looking at instant analysis of the Baltimore Ravens 20-10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers on NBC’s Sunday Night Football

The Ravens are 9-3 and back atop the AFC after a hard-fought, 20-10 win over the Chargers at SoFi Stadium on Sunday night.

Quarterback Lamar Jackson was 18-32 passing, for 177 yards and one passing touchdown, while Jackson also had 11 carries for 39 yards. Explosive rookie running back Keaton Mitchell led the group with 64 yards on nine carries, while Zay Flowers had two touchdowns and 62 total yards on the night.

The Ravens’ defense was dominant, holding the Chargers to 279 yards of offense on 69 plays. Justin Herbert and company went 7-15 on third downs and 1-2 in the red zone.

With Baltimore set for a much-needed goodbye, here’s an instant analysis of the win.

Ravens vs. Chargers inactive: Marlon Humphrey ruled out with Calf injury

The Ravens released their inactives list for Sunday night at the Chargers and Zay Flowers and Odell Beckham are both active, while Marlon Humphrey was ruled out

The Ravens released their list of inactives for Sunday night, and Zay Flowers will be available, along with Odell Beckham Jr.

Star cornerback Marlon Humphrey will miss the game with a calf injury.

Beckham called himself a game-time decision with a shoulder injury, while Flowers missed multiple practices this week with a hip injury.

Beckham had four catches for 116 yards in Week 11, while Flowers is the team’s leading receiver this season. Left tackle Ronnie Stanley (knee) is also expected to play after having a questionable designation.