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August 30, 2007

CJ Jones shines in Pats victory

BY ROBERT LEE
Journal Sports Writer

FOXBORO – C.J. Jones is one of several players on the bubble to make the Patriots' roster. But after Thursday night’s performance against the New York Giants, he might have played well enough to earn a spot.

Not only did Jones catch three passes for 59 yards in New England’s 27-20 victory over the Giants, he returned four kickoffs for 117 yards, averaging 29.3 yards per kickoff return, and returned two punts for 33 yards, averaging 16.5 yards per punt return.

To put that in perspective, Justin Miller of the New York Jets led the NFL in kickoff returns with an average of 28.3 yards a kickoff return last year, and Pacman Jones, of the Tennessee Titans, led the NFL in punt returns last season, averaging 12.9 yards per punt return.

''It was great to get an opportunity out there,'' said Jones, who only had one catch for nine yards prior to last night’s game. ''Coach [Bill] Belichick gave me a chance and I just tried to make the most of it. I was just trying to help the team in any way I could. I tried to get positive yards all the time and just tried to catch everything I could get.''

Jones said that it was all or nothing for him.

''This game was very important. [Belichick] gave us a chance to come out here and make plays and when you get that chance you just have to go ahead and make the most of it and make the decision hard for them at the end of the day,'' Jones said.

Vinny Testaverde hooked up with Jones on two separate occasions during the Patriots ' second-half opening six play, 70-yard touchdown drive that gave them a 17-7 lead.

The first was a 23-yard pass on first-and-10 from the New England 48. That gave the Pats a first down on the Giants' 29-yard line.

''I just put it all out there,'' Jones said. ''I had nothing to hide or save. I just did what they told me to do.''

On first and goal from the 9-yard line later in the drive, Testaverde hit Jones on a short screen pass toward the right sideline. Jones put two moves on New York defensive back Aaron Ross and sprinted toward the end zone. He was brought down eight yards later at the 1. Quinton Smith punched in the touchdown on a run up the middle.

''Vinny was doing a good job finding me in the holes,'' Jones said. ''I just had to be there when he called upon me. I’m just thankful for him . . . It was cool being out there with him.''

Jones is averaging 31 yards per kickoff return (8-for-248) this preseason, which is important because Belichick has said that excelling on special teams is a good way to make the Patriots roster.

''You can look at our roster in the last few years, or even since I’ve been here, and find plenty of players on the 53-man roster who had a significant amount of playing time in the kicking game and had very little offensively or defensively,'' Belichick said. ''There’s no question that there is a place for those players on our roster and they’re important players to us. Some players give us offensive and defensive depth and fewer plays in the kicking game. Other players give us a lot of plays in the kicking game and fewer plays as depth on offense and defense. Some guys are more balanced. When you put your roster together, you have to find a way to get all of those bases covered. There’s no question that special teams is a big factor in the makeup of your team and in some roster decisions. No doubt about it.''

Jones, who's never played in a regular-season NFL game, was signed by the Patriots as a free agent on June 7. He said he's not worried about getting cut because he's been through this process before.

He was originally signed by the Cleveland Browns as a rookie free agent on May 2, 2003, and played on the Browns practiced squad before being allocated by the Browns to NFL Europe in the spring of 2005. He was released Cleveland on Sept. 3, 2005, after spending the entire 2004 season on the team’s practice squad.

After catching 10 passes for 118 yards for the Cologne Centurions in NFL Europe during the 2005 season, Jones was signed by the Seattle Seahawks on Jan. 5, 2006. He was allocated by the Seahawks to NFL Europe in the spring of 2006 and caught 7 passes for 82 yards for the Berlin Thunder.

''I’ve been through it a couple of times so I just take my mind off it, pray about it, and just hope that I got enough film for other teams if this team is not the one,'' Jones said. '' . . . That’s my main objective. I was playing for all of the other teams if this team is not the one for me. I think I did enough to show my skills for other teams to see.''

Posted by Rob Lee  at 11:26 PM | Permalink