Though little solace may be taken by the New England Patriots from their disappointing 22-18 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday at Gillette Stadium, the standout performance of rookie Marcus Jones was perhaps the Patriots brightest silver lining.
Facing third-and-11 with 3:51 remaining in the third quarter, Jones stepped in front of a pass from Bengals’ quarterback Joe Burrow intended for wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase. Jones intercepted the throw and showcased his speed by returning it 69 yards for the touchdown. The ex-Houston Cougar gave the Patriots their first points of the day, in what had been a listless effort on both sides of the ball.
While the play brought the relatively light Gillette Stadium crowd to its feet, Jones saw it simply as doing his job.
“We were in a certain coverage and whenever I saw him throw the ball I was like, ‘I gotta get there first,’” Jones told reporters after the game. “Make sure I get there and catch it. Then after that I saw our whole defense setting up a wall, I was running and seeing [Joe] Burrow, the last man, and I was like, ‘Let me make sure I don't step out.’”
With his defensive score on Saturday, Jones has now scored a touchdown on offense, defense and special teams. In doing so, he becomes the first New England player, as well as the first NFL player, to do so in at least the last 45 years (since 1978) per the Elias Sports Bureau.
Jones had already returned a punt 84 yards for a touchdown in the Pats victory over the New York Jets on Nov. 20 and scored on a 48-yard touchdown pass in their Week 14 matchup with the Buffalo Bills on Dec 1.
The only other player in the Super Bowl era to score a 40-plus-yard touchdown in each manner is Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders.
Though Jones continues to compile individual accolades, he has been one of the consistent few to shine light on what has been a rough stretch for the team; having lost four of their last five games.
With their loss, New England dropped to 7-8 on the season. While they have yet to be mathematically eliminated from postseason play, they will not only need to defeat both the Miami Dolphins (Jan. 1 at Gillette Stadium) and Buffalo Bills (Jan. 8 at Highmark Stadium) in their final two regular-season games, they would also need a great deal of help with win-loss combinations from several teams.
To quote a phrase from the New England lexicon, the Patriots are ‘gonna need a bigger boat’ to qualify for the playoffs.
Still, Jones’ emergence as the team’s new triple threat provides a spark for the team’s morale, as well as an example of doing all it takes to win … even if it means triple duty.
Having the ability to align in all three phases, Jones has been taking part in multiple positional team meetings to prepare for the Pats’ opponents each week. Still, the ex-Houston Cougar is eager to learn the nuances of each role he is asked to play.
“During the week, it will be different things to where Coach needs me to go to this meeting or go to that meeting,” Jones said. “That's just basically how it goes. I make sure I'm locked in on both sides and know what to do.”
Jones was once again the point man in another forced turnover, when he recovered Chase’s fumble off of the strip by linebacker Matthew Judon with time winding down in the fourth quarter. Judon, New England’s only Pro Bowl selection this season, recognizes that Jones’ work ethic and preparation put him in the right place by design, instead of happenstance.
“Marcus, bro, Marcus is always in the right spot at the right time and he makes the correct plays,” Judon said. And I don't think you can ask more from a guy, but every week we do. And he delivers.”
As Jones continues to deliver, the Patriots will turn their attention to the Miami Dolphins and a 1 p.m. kickoff on Sunday, Jan. 1 at Gillette Stadium.
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