Regular readers on this site may remember a previous article I wrote regarding gun-related charges in professional sports. I wrote that soon after Jack Jones was originally arrested for having a couple guns in his bag as he attempted to pass through security at Logan International Airport in Boston. This was recently after the suspension levied on Ja Morant by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver in what seemed to be a punishment for a culmination of bad behavior, including flashing guns on Instagram Live and bringing a gun on the Grizzlies team plane (what is it with guns and aerial transportation?).
A main point of the article, and the key irony that many reputable media outlets have declared made the article a masterpiece, was the focus on Jack Jones’ take on the Morant situation. Jones tweeted about the situation in a very critical tone, which was then soon after contrasted with being starkly applicable to his own actions. Quite hilarious.
At the time, the only logical things to think about this were:
- If Jones made a public statement about how stupid openly presenting and misbehaving with guns is, particularly for professional athletes, how much of an idiot would he have to be to go on and commit an offense even worse than Morant’s?
- Is there another side to this story where it may not be as big of a deal or may just be a misunderstanding? I refuse to believe Jack Jones is that much of an imbecile.
- Why did the Patriots bench Malcolm Butler in Super Bowl 52, when having him in would have likely given them a better shot given that Johnson Bademosi and Jordan Richards kept getting cooked? (always a relevant thought regarding the Patriots).
Well, today we got some great news on the matter (unless perhaps you are the owner of a Panda Express location, in which case you may find this news disconcerting).
In my previous article, I didn’t commit to saying he was guilty. In fact, I said that I really hoped he wasn’t; this was not solely for my hopes for the Patriots, but for my belief in humanity’s intelligence. Now, I’m not sure this means that Jones is innocent and did nothing wrong, but he was not proven guilty, and as an American, I choose to take this as him being in the clear. I suppose the NFL could still choose to look into it more and suspend him, as the league does not need to align its decisions with those of the legal system, but it would be really soft if they did suspend him. My man beat the case. Let him do his thing.
To add a caveat to that last sentence: OJ Simpson also beat his case, but I would be hesitant to allow OJ to “do his thing”. Plus, OJ would be of little use to the Patriots secondary.
Given the dropping of the charges, Jack Jones can now fully shift his focus to being a threat to air travel on the gridiron instead of at the airport.
After a stellar rookie season as probably the best Patriots outside corner, Jones is primed to build on his success and be a key cog in what I expect to be an elite New England secondary. He returns to the cornerback corps with familiar faces Jonathan Jones (who is an elite slot cornerback who deserves more recognition), and fellow second year Marcus Jones. For those of you keeping track at home, that is three (3) Joneses in one position group (on a team quarterbacked by Mac Jones). That’s nuts, and frankly, I’d feel a little bit dejected if I were a Jones in the NFL and I wasn’t on the Patriots. In addition to all the Joneses at cornerback, Patriots 2023 first round pick (17th overall) and obvious future hall of famer Christian Gonzalez looks to start outside opposite Jack Jones.
The corners aren’t the stars of the defensive backend for the Patriots, though. The Pats have one of, if not the best safety groups in the league, even after the retirement of longtime stud Devin McCourty. Jalen Mills will take some of those free safety responsibilities, with some help from noted coin toss hype factory Jabrill Peppers.
The strong safeties are even better, featuring solid veteran Adrian Phillips and Kyle Dugger, who is entering his fourth year and could (in my opinion) make some All-Pro noise this season.
With this secondary, the underdog Patriots have a shot to compete with what is a stacked division and conference. I can’t wait to watch. The Pats start their campaign by taking on the defending NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles in Foxborough this Sunday afternoon. I hope to see DeVonta Smith and A.J. Brown strapped up, rather than Jack Jones.