{"id":993067,"date":"2026-09-06T04:00:23","date_gmt":"2026-09-06T04:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/993067\/"},"modified":"2026-09-06T04:00:23","modified_gmt":"2026-09-06T04:00:23","slug":"will-campbell-praises-marcus-jones-as-x-factor-punt-returner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/993067\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Campbell praises Marcus Jones as X-factor punt returner"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNew England Patriots\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tWhen Mike Vrabel asked his team why punt return work is so crucial, Campbell didn’t miss a beat.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\n\tMarcus Jones is a dynamic player on defense and special teams for the Patriots. (Danielle Parhizkaran\/Globe Staff)\t<\/p>\n

Marcus Jones might still be underrated as a slot corner in the NFL, but he has a reputation for being one of the most dangerous punt returners in the league.<\/p>\n

He made a name for himself by returning a punt for a touchdown in the final moments of the game to beat the Jets in 2022, and last season he broke the record for most yards per punt return in NFL history<\/a> (minimum 75 return attempts).<\/p>\n

He also currently holds the franchise record<\/a> for most return yards in one game, and is tied with Julian Edelman for the longest punt return in franchise history.<\/p>\n

His play with the ball in his hand is so dynamic that he\u2019s even taken snaps on the offensive side of the ball. Mike Vrabel hasn\u2019t deployed him in that way yet, but Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels is one of the more resourceful minds in the NFL.<\/p>\n

If Jones ever does take offensive snaps again in New England, it\u2019s a pretty sure bet that Will Campbell will have his back.<\/p>\n

Campbell gave high praise for Jones during a recent Patriots team meeting (via the Patriots\u2019 \u201cForged in Foxborough\u201d docuseries). Vrabel was emphasizing special teams importance and asked the room why punt return is so important for them. Campbell didn\u2019t miss a beat:<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause we have Marcus Jones.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the exact answer Vrabel was looking for, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, thank you. That\u2019s an offensive tackle, Will, who\u2019s paying attention,\u201d Vrabel said. \u201cIt\u2019s cause we have one guy that can change a game.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jones has changed the dynamic of games for the Patriots, and will continue to do so from his punt return spot. But he also improved on defense last season, becoming a great complement to Christian Gonzalez and Carlton Davis in New England\u2019s nickel-heavy defensive game plan.<\/p>\n

Jones\u2019s respect in the locker room is echoed beyond just Campbell and Vrabel. He was voted a captain of the Patriots in 2026, suggesting he\u2019s taken steps forward as a leader and role model as well. <\/p>\n

Jones will no doubt play a major role for the Patriots in 2026. And if Gonzalez does elect to hold out Week 1 of the season, he\u2019ll be challenged even further, playing a lion\u2019s share of defensive snaps along with his special teams contributions.<\/p>\n

Jones and the Patriots make their season debut on Wednesday night against the Seahawks.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGet the latest Boston sports news<\/p>\n

Receive updates on your favorite Boston teams, straight from our newsroom to your inbox.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"New England Patriots When Mike Vrabel asked his team why punt return work is so crucial, Campbell didn’t…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":993068,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2050],"tags":[7,1167,249,2326,2094,6,208],"class_list":["post-993067","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-england-patriots","tag-football","tag-new-england","tag-new-england-patriots","tag-newengland","tag-newenglandpatriots","tag-nfl","tag-patriots"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/117222102137428528","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/993067","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=993067"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/993067\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/993068"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=993067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=993067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=993067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}