Report: Patriots won’t tag Jonathan Jones

Posted by Myles Simmons on March 7, 2023, 12:30 PM EST
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The Patriots are going to let a key defensive back hit the open market.

Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, New England will not tag cornerback Jonathan Jones before Tuesday’s 4 p.m. deadline.

Jones joined the Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2016 and had been a rotational player on team’s defense from 2017-2021. He became a full-time starter in 2022, starting all 16 games in which he appeared.

Jones has also played significant special teams saps throughout his career.

In 2022, Jones had 69 total tackles, four interceptions, three forced fumbles, and 11 passes defensed.

Rapoport also notes that the Patriots do have interest in re-signing Jones. But he’ll surely have other teams interested in his services as a free agent.

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17 responses to “Report: Patriots won’t tag Jonathan Jones”

  2. When the pats let J.C. walk last year and he joined the chargers, i wasnt surprised because Stefon Diggs burnt J.C. every time they played, so i knew he wasnt worth the huge salary. But Jones is the real deal, and was easily their best player on D last season. As a Bills fan, im way happier to see Jones go than i was with J.C, even though Diggs burnt them both

  4. Jones has gone from a rotational depth piece to a nice player, in the slot. When he had to be a #1 CB, he got toasted a bit. He only played 6 games in 21 and last year he started well but when they faced better passing offenses he struggled a bit. It looked like the experiment wasn’t working like it needed to. He might be able to hold down a #2 spot but without a #1 CB, the Pats had to play him above his punching weight. He is best in the slot. He will be 30 when the season starts. Cornerback play peaks at the age of 27, then drops precipitously at age 29 (we saw some of that last season). It drops off again at 32 for the true All Pro #1’s with the measurable’s. I have a hard time seeing a 30 year old cornerback that has done a great job climbing the ladder as an undrafted free agent (Belichick does this all the time – Malcolm Butler, Randall Gay, J.C. Jackson etc), but it took him until his later 20’s to become a regular player in his prime years, so he doesn’t have much time left to play at a high level, according to historical trends. He’s a good player and seems like a good guy to have on the team. I am not sure that will be the result if he has to go to a new team, a new place, and a new system, with different players and coaches around him. He’s going to get a raise for sure, and he deserves it. I do think his best fit is right there with the Patriots. It’s the NFL so someone will over pay and the Patriots will probably have to let him go.

  5. The Patriots seem to think it’s better to let players test the market and have them come back and want to be with the Patriots as opposed to franchising them and being bitter. Of course, that means they sometimes lose players, but they aren’t exactly competing for a title right now either, so getting a guy for 1 more year at a premium isn’t very useful. Seems smart for the current state of the team.

  6. March 7, 2023 at 12:46 pm
    But Jones is the real deal, and was easily their best player on D last season.

    ******

    Ahem. Matt Judon would like a word.

  7. I would like to see the Pats keep Jones and Meyers but neither one is worth franchise tag dollars at those positions.

    If they sign for crazy money elsewhere, God bless them and best of luck to both.

  8. Love this guy. So underrated. Great closing speed, lateral movement. Some of the best, if not the best interior work from a slot CB that’s ever played in NE. Best nickel in the conference and has been for years. He and Meyers need long term deals, not tags or anythingn else.

    My guess is the player wanted to test the waters for the first time and BB respected that wish. He’s done it with others like Edelmann the past. It’s really their only time to really test the market.

    If the price is too high for a soone to be 30 year old nickel, then they’ll move on.

    One advantage BB does have is, the player is better in NE than elsewhere, save for HOFers like Vinatieri or Brady.

    It’s up to the player to see that, too. There are still loads of horribly run teams in this league.

  9. Jones & Meyers are arguably 2 of their top 5 players. It’s interesting that they’re willing to let both test the market. I don’t know what their cap situation is – but it can’t be that bad these days.

    Interesting decisions. As a fan of a division rival, I hope both guys are with different teams when the season starts.

  10. The best nickel in the conference is Mike Hilton and it’s not even close

  11. ‘Prominent’ NFL Agent Says Patriots Are Still Operating In Free Agency ‘As If They’re The Tom Brady Patriots’

    “I had a prominent agent tell me this story, which blew me away,” Breer said on Toucher & Rich on Monday. “He said the Patriots are still operating as if it’s five or six years ago, where they can go in with premium free agents and say to them, ‘We’re not going to meet your price, but if your market craters, come back with to us, and maybe we can do a one-year deal.’ And this agent said to me, he was like, ‘I don’t know what they’re talking about. It’s like, yeah, maybe I’d send my guy there when Tom Brady was there to restore his stock, but why would I send him there now?’ So there’s still sort of this feeling that they’re operating as if they’re the Tom Brady Patriots when there’s — again, a lot of the infrastructure from those years I mean, forget even just the quarterback, all of that is gone.”

  12. Patriots fans, especially those who still believe in Belichick the garbage, talk like they have stayed in space station for long time and just come back to Earth.

    Let players try FA markets and Match the offers? who wants to come back to Patriots where the winning culture or the winning system left 3 years?

  13. Let players try FA markets and Match the offers? who wants to come back to Patriots where the winning culture or the winning system left 3 years?

    ——-

    So, should the Pats be signing Jones even though he wants to be paid as a CB1 when he’s not a CB1?

    Same thing for Meyers? They should give him WR1 money even though he’s obviously a wr2?

    And admit it, if the Pats did that you would accuse BB of overpaying as soon as he did it.

    So, what would you suggest they do . Maybe you can provide a real answer instead of talking in riddles like you normally do

  14. Neither of these guys is worth a franchise or even a transitional tag from the Pats. So, the best the Pats can do is what they’ve done, offer a contract that they think the player is worth. If the player thinks they are worth more they don’t sign the Pats contract and go looking.

    It’s perfectly logical that you don’t pay a slot corner who is turning 30 a CB1 contract. Same thing for Meyer, good player and I’d like to have him on the team, but he wants WR1 money. He’s not worth that. If the Pats did that, everyone would say how BB overpaid.

    Right now BB is doing the right thing with these two players and everyone wants to bag on him for that.

    Let’s be honest, BB could save a dozen kittens from a tree and some people would say he’s horrible.

  15. Jokersc,

    One, my two posts were about the sentiment of Patriots fans, that they feel that players want to play for patriots. That is NOT the case any more, there are no reasons that a player wants to play for Patriots over other teams.

    Two, about “what should Pats do?”
    The purpose of salary cap is to make it almost impossible to build team that has long term success, unless a team takes huge risk and aim at great achievement in very short term (or you have a QB who doesn’t need top play makers). So for Pats to be a respectable team in next 2 or 3 years, either Pats have to overpay some top tier play makers and/or make some great drafts.

    For a team to make to playoff easily, the team needs a top tier play maker, PLUS a receiver like Jacobi Meyers. You want to do the right thing? fine, you sure Pats will find a top tier play maker plus find another Jacob Meyer?

  16. “BB could save a dozen kittens from a tree”

    Troy Brown, Deion Branch, Wes Welker, Edelman, James White.

    All of them were on the same level as Jacobi Meyers, except Edelman. Who saved a dozen Kittens? I told you before that the reason the system worked was because of the TIME Brady threw the balls. Without Brady, there will be no “easy” routes and “easy” throws, and Belichick and Pats have to put lot talents on offense in order to have a respectable offense.

    Without Brady, the Pats between 2001 and 2006 would be even worse than the Pats in last 3 seasons. Given how much he invested on defense, Belichick didn’t do anything special. That is why Belichick was replaceable.

  17. “Doing right thing” doesn’t imply success, that is the point you don’t get.

    WITH SALARY CAP, THERE IS NO LONG TERM. Because for a team to have great success (in playoff), the team needs TWO top play makers, (or one top play maker PLUS two play makers like Jacobi Meyer), which is impossible for long term with salary cap, UNLESS the QB doesn’t need so much talents on offense.

    I don’t know what fans of Belichick don’t get it : the reason Belichick could build the team in a way that he didn’t have to spend much offense was because of Brady, SINCE 2001.

    For Belichick not realizing it, his stupidity is beyond solar system if not beyond milky way, because he should know that HE NEEDED BRADY’S “slow and boring” top offense for his defense.

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