In the aftermath of the Patriots' victory over the Giants a couple of Mondays ago, Marcus Jones walked up to the podium, still clad in his game pants and smiled, flashing those pearly whites. He had every reason to beam. Not only had the Pats won their 10th straight game, but Jones had put himself in the NFL history books, becoming the all-time punt return leader in terms of yards per return.
That mark had stood since 1950, held by former Bear George McAfee. From 1940 to his retirement a decade later, McAfee averaged 12.78 yards per return. On his 75th return - thereby hitting the qualifying number - Jones went 94 yards for a touchdown, and finished the evening with a career mark of nearly two yards better than McAfee (14.64).
“Whenever my dad had me in a parking lot when I was like 4 years old, he used to throw the ball in the air and be like, ‘Track it.’ That was the first thing I thought about,” Jones recalled.
If you walked by Jones on the street, you would have no idea he was capable of being something special. He’s 5’8”, and I would argue that’s on a good day, and not quite pushing 190 pounds. But what you’d miss is how fast he is, how quick, how tough, and how courageous. Yeah, to do what Jones does as a punt returner requires a level of fearlessness that most - even the elite athletes - do not possess. When he decides to field the ball, there’s more of a chance he’s going to get smoked than end up in the opponent’s end zone.
“Yeah, for sure,” Jones told me earlier this week. “I would say I love the adrenaline rush that comes with it. Not a lot of people like to do it, but I love to do it.”
Mike Vrabel has repeatedly noted that the coaching staff has