The New England Patriots’ rookie class has made a strong impression in its first season for the team. Marcus Jones was an example of that, as he scored the game-winning touchdown on a kickoff return against the New York Jets.
Jones was known as a versatile player in college while at Houston. He was given the 2021 Paul Hornung award, which is given to the nation’s most versatile player in college football.
That versatility has translated well to the NFL.
Patriots legend and receivers coach Troy Brown has worked closely with Jones over the past couple of months. It’s something that Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has noticed, and he has been impressed with the job Brown has been doing.
“I think Troy Brown has done a great job with him,” Belichick said, via NESN’s Zack Cox. “Where Marcus was when he got here and where he is now, they’re an ocean apart. Troy has really done a good job with the ball-handling, ball catching, making the first guy miss, ball security, setting up blocks, having vision on the ball, the gunner, playing the wind, so forth.”
Can confirm.#NEvsMIN 11/24 on NBC pic.twitter.com/zXEpOst1Sm
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) November 21, 2022
New England came into the 2022 NFL draft placing an emphasis on speed and explosive players. So far, Jones has been able to provide both of those things, as the Patriots remain firmly in the middle of the playoff hunt.
