Jack Jones Rumors: When Patriots Expect Corner To Return From IR

The Patriots’ ideal cornerback combination would be rookie Christian Gonzalez on one side and sophomore Jack Jones on the other.

Don’t expect it to see anytime soon.

Gonzalez, of course, is healthy and off to a tremendous start. But Jones still is on injured reserve with what New England described as a hamstring injury.

Some fans and pundits have openly wondered whether Jones’ IR stint is a de facto team suspension for his legal issues during the offseason. Maybe that’s the case, maybe it isn’t. Either way, Jones, who is eligible to come off IR next week, could stay sidelined for at least another month.

“Some around the team were targeting midseason as a more likely timetable,” ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported Sunday morning.

An extended absence for Jones would be bad news for the Patriots.

Second-year corner Marcus Jones recently landed on IR due to a torn labrum, and veteran Jonathan Jones will miss his third straight game Sunday due to a shoulder issue. New England likely will deploy a cornerback trio of Gonzalez, Myles Bryant and Shaun Wade when it takes on the Cowboys in Dallas. Safety Jalen Mills also can help out at cornerback.

Perhaps Jack Jones returns sooner than expected and gives the Patriots a lift in the secondary. But, at this point, it looks like he could be out for a while.