Cyrus Jones leaves Patriots preseason finale with knee injury

Share

FOXBORO -- Two weeks. Two non-contact knee injuries. Two Patriots punt-returners down. 

Less than a week after losing Julian Edelman to a season-ending knee injury, the Patriots saw Cyrus Jones fall awkwardly to the turf against in their preseason finale against the Giants. Jones was in coverage of Travis Rudolph and running down the left sideline when his right leg appeared to give out on him. 

MORE:

Jones, a 2016 second-round pick out of Alabama, was tended to by Patriots medical personnel and eventually headed to the locker room. He was later officially ruled out. 

Jones will undergo an MRI on Friday morning, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

The Patriots could have a punt-returner issue on their hands. Jones appeared to be the first choice as the team's return man for punts, and Edelman could have received some of the more high-leverage punts given his talents in that area. Now the team could be without both. 

Danny Amendola is the returner on the Patriots roster with the most experience in the punt game, but the Patriots have been judicious in how they've used Amendola in the hopes of keeping him healthy for the stretch run. Would the coaching staff feel comfortable running Amendola out as their primary returner for Week 1? Or will they hope to land someone from another roster with some experience as a punt returner?

The Patriots have had several players return punts throughout the course of training camp, but perhaps the player with the most college experience in that role would be Will Likely. In 2015, Likely was an All-American selection, Big Ten Return Specialist of the Year, and first-team All-Big Ten defender. 

Contact Us