Tuesday Patriots Notebook 7/2: News and Notes
Follow us
Follow Us
🕑 Read Time: 5 minutes
Posted Under: Patriots News
HOME > Patriots Blog > Patriots News
Some Patriots news and notes for this morning:
Former Patriots defensive back Jack Jones’ time in New England was certainly short, to say the least. Fortunately, it sounds like the club finally closed the book on the Arizona State standout, at least financially.
According to Patriots salary cap expert Miguel Benzan, the former 2022 fourth-round draft pick finally ended his salary grievance, receiving $23,889 in cash this offseason, which stemmed from the suspension he received from the team back at the end of the 2022 season. Benzan points out that sum is 1/18th of the $430k salary for Jones that year.
Jones’ grievance originated from the disagreement over the team’s punishment, which happened after he suffered a knee injury that season but missed team-mandated appointments during his rehabilitation process. He ultimately ended up on injured reserve at the end of the season.
MMQB analyst Albert Breer appeared on NBC Sports Boston after things unfolded and talked about the embattled defensive back’s situation, which he claimed also included an issue between Jones and then-head coach Bill Belichick.
“My understanding of the way that went is, (Jones) was late to rehab sessions, he missed rehab sessions,” said Breer back in January. “And I think he even talked back to Bill a little bit about it, to the point where Bill felt like he had to address it in a team meeting two Fridays ago.”
Jones denied any confrontation with Belichick last June, firing back at Breer over the report on social media, saying, “I never mouthed off at Bill idk where y’all getting that from,” adding, “please don’t write false stories.”
After the season came to an end, Belichick appeared to put things in the rearview, saying back in March of 2023 that the discipline involving his player was “over,” with the club clearing the air heading into that season and trying to get off to a fresh start.
Things did seem relatively normal. Jones was present during the team’s offseason practices and was actually impressive, but after Belichick ended camp early, things took a turn when Jones was arrested for bringing a loaded weapon through security at Logan Airport. That ended up being a significant setback, starting off a new set of problems for him ahead of training camp.
While his attorney ultimately got the charges dropped, Jones never got things back on track, suffering what was called a “freak injury” to his hamstring that summer, which saw him start off the year on IR.
He didn’t see any action until Week 7 against Buffalo, playing in 51% of the snaps in that outing, and was in on 58% of the plays the following week against Miami. But he and J.C. Jackson reportedly missed curfew ahead of their game against the Commanders, and things certainly seemed off from there.
He and Jackson were both sat down to start the game, and those troubles carried over after Jackson was left behind ahead of the club’s trip to Germany, while Jones was again sidelined to start the Colts game. He ultimately played just ten snaps, and whatever transpired proved to be the breaking point.
According to Boston Sports Journal’s Mike Giardi, Jones’ “behavior/engagement” in Germany wasn’t to the level the team had hoped for following his previous benching against the Commanders, which led to the decision.
Belichick told reporters that ensuing week, “I felt like it was time to move on,” as the team ultimately parted ways with Jones in November, which ultimately saw him land in Las Vegas.
For now, this final move hopefully closes the book on a player who had a lot of upside, but the gamble didn’t pay off. As Belichick famously used to say, “It is what it is.”
The Athletic’s Chad Graff is doing a deep dive on a variety of players ahead of training camp, and one bit on second-year wideout Demario Douglas has some people talking.
The chatter has to do with whether or not Douglas is a fit in New England’s new offense, which stems over a comment Graff made as it pertains to new offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt.
In his piece, Graff points out that the club often only has two receivers on the field in this scheme, which he feels could affect Douglas’ impact compared to what we saw his rookie year. He also cites ball security as a concern.
“Van Pelt’s offense doesn’t utilize three-wide-receiver sets as much as other teams, meaning the Patriots are likely to often have just two receivers on the field,” wrote Graff. “It’s still unclear if coaches think Douglas is good enough to be one of those two receivers (as something more than a pure slot option).”
“The other concern is his ball security. Patriots coach Jerod Mayo came up learning from Bill Belichick, who despised turnovers. Last season, Douglas matched Mac Jones for the most fumbles on the team (each had three) despite only touching the ball 57 times. If he doesn’t take better care of the ball this season, Mayo could drop him down the depth chart.”
Ball security was definitely an issue, especially during the early part of the year. He fumbled in Week 2 against Miami, and lost it twice in a November meeting at MetLife stadium against the Giants, although one of those came following a violent hit that was essentially a clothesline, knocking him out of the game.
Douglas ultimately led all receivers in receptions last season, finishing with 49 catches for 561 yards. Only running back Ezekiel Elliott finished ahead of him, catching 51 passes for 313 yards and two touchdowns.
The rookie also led the team in third-down receptions, catching 13 passes for 172 yards and moving the chains on seven of those catches.
Given his shiftiness and his ability to get open in key situations, one would have to believe they’ll figure out a way to get him on the field.
Hopefully, with a full season under his belt and more experience, we’ll see any issues end up in the rearview as he looks to build on things ahead of his sophomore campaign.
Douglas has indeed been grinding it out recently, with the young wideout apparently working out with Drake Maye’s former teammate, Josh Downs after Douglas posted a photo of the two on his Instagram page. Despite this off period, it doesn’t appear to be stopping him from preparing for the upcoming season. … With the calendar turning to July, the Patriots currently find themselves just 17 days away from when rookies report to Foxboro ahead of training camp. Raise your hand if you’re also looking forward to this dead period being over with and football officially kicking off. … Happy Birthday to Troy Brown, who turns 53 today. The former 8th-round draft choice (yes, there were once more than 7 rounds in the draft) was taken 198th overall in 1993, and it’s still only fitting that the former Patriots great was taken there while Tom Brady was taken 199th in 2000. … According to Draft Kings, the Patriots are currently +15000 to win the Super Bowl this year, tied with Denver and Tennessee. The only team currently with lower odds is the Carolina Panthers at +25000. I’m not a gambler, and unlike that 2001 team, there are so many questions and uncertainty with this group, which would make putting up any money a little tough. Playing in February certainly feels like it would take an unprecedented miracle at this point, but nevertheless, it should still be an interesting season to follow. … According to the Northwest Arkansas Democrat and Gazette, tight end Hunter Henry is back in his home state working with kids at a local football camp. “I got reached out to about this opportunity and I jumped at it,” Henry told the publication Monday. “It’s always good to be in Arkansas, especially Little Rock or close to Little Rock. It’s always good to be home.” The veteran was part of a two-day youth football camp at the Little Rock Air Force Base in Jacksonville, Arkansas as part of the “ProCamps” series that Procter and Gamble and the Defense Commissary Agency sponsors every year for children of service members in locations across the United States.
From our archive - this week all-time:
April 4 - April 19 (Through 26yrs)
Join 2,000+ fans getting exclusive stats, analysis, and insights delivered straight to their inbox every week. Never miss a play.
Pop Douglas will play. Why? When is it you hear peer players consistently say a guy “can’t be covered”? Not often. Welker was one. Gronks early years were a matchup nightmare. Guys that can get open in the NFL play. Fumbles? He also made tough catches getting hit hard over the middle. Other players have learned how to minimize fumbles. As for Jack Jones, when you come into the league with chronicled issues in college and slip back rounds in the draft because of it, and then have gun issues, miss rehab and are late for meetings in succession, I… Read more »