FOXBOROUGH - Sunday was almost a year to the day that Marcus Jones' second season in the NFL went up in smoke. It happened in a week two loss to Miami, Jones blowing out his shoulder. He had to have surgery for a torn labrum, then was managed this spring and summer before finally getting cut loose in Cincinnati.
The diminutive Jones - he's listed at 5-foot-8, 188 pounds - made an impact both in coverage and with his tacking, including a couple of early third-down stops that helped set a tone that this Patriots defense maintained for the majority of that upset victory.
"Yeah, it felt great to be back with the guys," smiled Jones when I spoke with him today. "Basically, it's been almost 365 days since I played a game, but glad to be back out there with everyone and everything like that, and happy that we came out with dub (win)."
It wasn't just Marcus who played bigger than his size. The man whose locker is right next to his in Foxborough, Jonathan Jones, had one of the plays of the game, taking out the much larger Andrei Iosivas (6-4, 210) on a critical fourth and two to end a Bengals drive in Patriot territory. The elder Jones is listed as a couple pounds smaller than Marcus but has never shied away from sticking his nose in there. It's why I always say/write that he's one of the toughest players, pound for pound, that I've seen come through Foxborough in the last 25 years.
"It doesn't matter about the size of the dog, right? It's really about the heart of the player, and they're not scared of anything or anybody," said Demarcus Covington of the Jones Boys. "They do it in practice. They show the same thing in practice, and they're able to do it in the game. That's what we'll continue to preach for those guys."
We know Marcus can fly, but even now, as the wise old vet in the secondary — Jonathan is 30 — he may still run as well as he did when he first came into the league as an undrafted free agent out of Auburn. As an aging soul myself, I poked at Jonathan when talking to Marcus, asking if he was surprised the old man could still fly. That drew a big "What?!?!?!" followed by laughter from the nine-year pro, while the younger Jones said simply, "I'm not surprised — I'm not surprised at all."
"Man, I still got it," peacocked Jonathan. "I don't think I'm going to start getting slow 'til I'm 40."
THE PLAN WORKED
Last week, Michael Onwenu told me that when all else fails for the Patriots' offensive line, his advice was to "Just hit somebody." Suffice it to say, even with some warts still evident, the group did just that Sunday, controlling the clock against a Cincinnati team that thinks it's a Super Bowl contender.
When I checked back with Onwenu today, the big tackle said that type of performance could have long-term effects.
"I think those are qualities that we all individually like to have," said Onwenu of being the bully. "But if we're gonna play like that collectively, then it'll trickle down, and it'll help the team, you know, just us carrying ourselves that way."
It was hard not to notice the marriage of that attitude and performance with that of running back Rhamondre Stevenson, who ran for 120 yards and a touchdown. Not only did Stevenson tell the coaching staff he'd prefer if they just ditched the wide-zone rushing attack and kept attacking the Bengals with downhill runs, but he also refused to leave the game late, demanding to finish what he started.
"It really tops us up," Onwenu said. "It made us want to really run the ball even more and have those holes open for him and block for him so we can end it (that way)."
Of course, now that the Pats have shown who they are and what they want to be, the follow-up question becomes, is this sustainable? Based on the limited tape out there, Seattle might decide to load up the box with 7 or more defenders...
"And then we turn into a passing team, laughed Jerod Mayo, then clarifying his philosophy. "When I say we're going to run the ball, if you want to load up the box, then we'll throw the ball. This is why I always tell the receivers, 'run the route like you're getting the ball each and every play,' because the game changes.
"It's one thing to sit there and say, 'This is the game plan on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.' I talk about mental agility and being able to really change instead of being rigid. We can't be rigid in the way we play. We can't be rigid in the way that we think. Who knows? This week, Jacoby [Brissett] may throw for 300 yards, or Rhamondre [Stevenson] may run for 200 yards. I really don't know. That's why I come out here to say it."
Mayo's onto something about rigidity, and at least in week one, Van Pelt showed he'd shelve a critical element of the West Coast scheme (the wide zone) and just use the hammer.
NO CHANGES
With Sidy Sow not participating in the media-access portion of practice, the Pats had the same five offensive linemen they finished Sunday's game with: Vederian Lowe, Michael Jordan, David Andrews, Layden Robinson, and Onwenu. The Pats used their first practice squad elevation with Jordan last week. You're allowed a maximum of three. Anything beyond that means the Pats would have to go the standard promotion route, meaning the player would have to replace an active member of the 53-man roster. If the Pats desire to return him to the practice squad, he'd be exposed to waivers.