Green Bay Packers film room: Breaking down second-round pick Josh Jones
By Dan Dahlke
Trait #2: Physical Play
The next part of Jones’ games that really jumps out on tape is how physical he is on the football field. He’s a guy that’s not afraid to lower his shoulder and hit. He’ll fly around the field and try to punish the ball carrier.
In this next clip, he’s playing Vanderbilt and he’s lined up as a linebacker in the box. It’s 3rd-and-4 and the Commodores throw a quick swing pass to the tight end. Jones bolts to the sidelines to knock the tight end out of bounds.
Jones goes all out to make the play. It was a huge stop for the NC State defense as Vanderbilt was looking to get into field goal range with one more first-down conversion.
Jones’ speed is evident on the field, but he also doesn’t hesitate to take down the ball carrier, making him an effective hitter in the open field.
He can be a flat-out tone setter on defense with his ability to layout ball carriers. Take this next play, for example. Jones is playing against Miami and tight end David Njoku takes a bubble screen upfield, but Jones is there to knock him out of bounds.
Jones packs a punch, and he does a nice job in this play lowering his shoulder instead of leading with his head. He will need to be careful, however, with these type of hits at the next level. This play would be inches away from getting him fined in the NFL.
This next play is from the Clemson game. Jones crashes down to pop the receiver over the middle of the field, and like his hit in the Miami game, he’ll have to be careful he’s not too reckless with this type of play.
However, when under control Jones’ aggressiveness can help set a tone on defense and provide an intimidating presence in the middle of the field.
Jones not only shows a willingness to be physical in the open field, he’s also not afraid to stick his nose in the action and mix it up against the run at the line of scrimmage.
While a lot of defensive backs sit back and pile inspect, Jones is assertive and crashes downhill in run support. It’s clear to see why he led the Wolfpack in tackles last season (109 stops).
On this second-down play against Vanderbilt Jones lines up as a fourth linebacker to offer extra run support. He does a nice job reading the run progression and getting in on the stop.
Jones’ ability to make plays against the run or deliver a booming hit in the open field should bring an extra edge to the Packers defense.
Whether he plays in a rotational role or sees the field more frequently as a nickel corner or linebacker, Jones brings another physical presence to Green Bay’s secondary in addition to Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and Morgan Burnett.