Cyrus Jones and his journey toward football redemption

FOXBOROUGH — One year ago this month, Cyrus Jones hit bottom.

The cornerback/return man sustained a torn ACL in the 2017 preseason finale against the Giants. For the Alabama product, it marked the low point of a year-plus odyssey that saw him become one of a handful of players to win National Championship and a Super Bowl in back-to-back seasons, but bitterly reject the idea that he was a part of the 2016 Patriots because of his late-season struggles, which including fumbling late in the year and a healthy scratch in the Super Bowl against Atlanta.

"I'll never take credit for something I don't feel I contributed to," he told the Baltimore Sun shortly after New England’s win in Super Bowl LI. "I was part of the team, but I didn't feel a part of it."

After spending all of last year on injured reserve with knee issues, Jones returned to the practice field with his teammates for the first time this summer last week. He’s not all the way back yet -- he's one of a handful of players who remain limited -- but he’s preaching positivity when it comes to 2018.



“I’m not trying to focus on frustration,” he said after Monday’s practice session. “I’m still blessed to be able to play this game. (I) have an opportunity to still put on a Patriots’ jersey. I’m just blessed to be able to come out here and run around on a football field. Get the work in, try to get back out here to be the best I can be. I’m looking forward to the opportunity to go back out there and have the opportunity to showcase the work I’ve put in.

“I’m not really worried about negative stuff right now — frustration. That’s in the past.”

The return to the practice field represents another step back for the former Alabama star, who said he spent much of the last year “working” on himself “as a person” in hopes of getting better. He said his process of moving on started soon after he learned he’d be out for the season.

“Very quickly, I just tried to move on and rely on my faith, and the fact everything happens for a reason, and take positives from it,” he said. “Anytime you’re a better person off the field, as far as intangible-wise, it carries over to the field.”

Jones was also able to lean on the likes of wide receiver Julian Edelman, who was also rehabbing a season-ending knee injury at the same time.

“It was cool,” he said of the bond he built with guys like Edelman who were also sidelined. “Nobody wishes injuries on anyone, but it’s a harsh reality of the game. The circumstance of all of us being injured at the same time, you definitely build a sense of camaraderie and empathy toward one another. You’re all going through the same thing. It was cool to have those guys around and be able to grind it out in rehab once we all reached that stage of being able to work out.

“It helps when you’re going through the same type of thing with someone and trying to reach the same goal. We probably got a little closer. I wouldn’t call ourselves best friends or anything — I’m cool with everybody on the team. Just in that particular moment in time, we were all leaning on each other a little bit.”

He also had the chance to step back and assess his game from a football perspective.

“Not being able to play the game physically, you only have one choice, and that’s to watch from the outside on in,” he said. “Try to become better as the student of the game. I have to try and do my best and take advantage of that.”

Jones built a rep as one of the better punt returners in college football. While the cornerback depth chart is a little muddled — behind Stephon Gilmore, anyway — the chance for him to find redemption as a punt returner is there. He has been working on catching punts over the last week-plus, and feels like he’s starting to get back into a groove.

“That’s one of those things … you don’t do it for a whole year, you kind of have to get your rhythm back. I’m just coming out and focusing on the fundamentals and trying to focus on every rep I can get,” he said. “It was very modified, the stuff I was able to do. Getting a decent ball, Ryan and those guys are up here punting during practice … trying to get as best a look I can from trainers or whoever can put the ball up there for me. I tried to do a little bit of it. But it’s definitely not the same being able to do it at practice.”

One of the things multiple people who knew Jones as a college star said this offseason that much of what he went through at the end of his rookie year with the Patriots wasn’t physical, but a matter of confidence. One mistake creates doubt, which left him shaken, and impacted his game.

“Everything is confidence,” Jones said when asked about some of the intangibles around returning punts. “The more you do something, the more confidence you have when you do it. I’d definitely say that.”

The good news? His track record suggests he'll be able to display a little fight.

“At Alabama, when he started at wide receiver and later moved to defensive back, he played consistently once he picked things up,” recalled former Alabama radio analyst Phil Savage, who watched every game of Jones’ career with the Tide. “I mean, I’m just sort of guessing here. Is he someone who has maxed out his true ability, or is he someone who will get better? I don’t know. But based on the improvements he made at Alabama, there’s definitely some characteristics that would lead you to believe he’d be willing to fight his way out of his current situation.”

Can Jones come out of the struggle of the last year-plus a stronger player? Only time will tell. But speaking with him now, it sounds like he’s used the year away from the game — his first extended time away from football — to his advantage. A year wiser, he’s learned a lot of lessons. The most important?

“Playing football is better than rehab,” Jones said. “It’s good to get back out here.”