Like many rookies, Packers defensive end Datone Jones struggled to make a big impact in his first NFL season.
Jones saw limited snaps as part of the team’s defensive line rotation, leaving some wondering whether the 2013 first-round pick would live up to that status. Jones is confident that all will work out fine, though. He made a big step forward in his second collegiate season and expects to make similar gains after “working really hard” this offseason. Not that Jones will feel fulfilled by earning more playing time this time around.
“I won’t be satisfied until I’m the best in the league,” Jones said, via the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “That’s the only way I’d be satisfied. Other than that, I still won’t be satisfied until I retire. No matter what year I have next year or the years to come, I don’t think I’ll ever be satisfied. Even if I have a great all-pro year, I still won’t be satisfied. I want to get better.”
Jones had 3.5 sacks in his brief appearances last season, so there were definitely flashes of the kind of production that the Packers were looking for when they selected Jones. With Julius Peppers and Mike Daniels on hand, Jones isn’t likely to see his playing time skyrocket in 2014 but similar results in increased snaps would put some needed teeth into Green Bay’s front seven while bumping Jones a bit closer to satisfaction.