August 3, 2017

Morris: Jones, Esks embrace next man up mentality

Esks.com

Middle linebacker Korey Jones always knew he had the physical skills to play football, but it wasn’t until he met J.C. Sherritt that he actually began to think the game.

Jones first met Sherritt in 2015 when he played 18 games for the Eskimos. The two became teammates again this year when Jones returned to Edmonton after a year with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

“He’s one of the smartest football players I’ve ever played with,” Jones said after an Edmonton practice this week. “His football IQ is unreal. I was able to take a lot of what J.C. does and put it in my tool belt and use it for me. He’s definitely showed me a different way to see the game.”

The six-foot-one, 230-pound Jones took over the starting middle linebacker position after Sherritt suffered a season-ending torn Achilles tendon in Edmonton’s first game of the year against the BC Lions.  After five games he’s second on the Eskimos with 26 tackles, including one on special teams.

“In a general sense, J.C. has taught me the ins and outs of the game,” said Jones. “Little specific details that I’m able to take to my game. I’ve been a player in the past that has relied mainly on athletic ability. To see him execute his responsibilities so well and kind of have an idea of what’s coming; he certainly sees the game differently.”

Besides being teammates, Sherritt and Jones have developed a friendship off the field.

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Jones has racked up the second most tackles for the Esks so far this season (Esks.com)

“He’s done a great job of allowing me to stay in his hip pocket when he was a starter and allowing me to prepare with him,” said Jones. “Once he got injured we didn’t skip a beat. I still go over to his place and we still film study together. We still watch (film) together and we still prepare together and talk things through.”

Jones knew he had big shoes to fill when Sherritt went down. Not only was he replacing a fan favourite, he also was taking over for a former league most outstanding defensive player.

“You’re always ready to step in,” said the 28-year-old native of Fort Collins, Colorado. “It’s a philosophy I’ve always had since college. If you stay ready you don’t have to get ready because you never know what may happen and when it may happen.

“When I was playing special teams I always liked to prepare like I was a starter. That’s just something I’ve done for years. Once it did happen it didn’t change my physical or mental preparation.”

Jones had seven tackles in Edmonton’s 37-26 win over the Lions last week. The Eskimos will put their perfect 5-0-0 record on the line when they host the winless Hamilton Tiger-Cats (0-5-0) Friday at Commonwealth Stadium.

Injuries have swarmed the Eskimos this season like hungry mosquitoes in Edmonton’s River Valley. The 18 players on Edmonton’s six-game injured list include Sherritt, all-star slotback Adarius Bowman, running backs Kendial Lawrence and John White, offensive lineman Simeon Rottier, defensive end Phillip Hunt, linebackers Cory Greenwood, Blair Smith and Adam Konar and cornerback Marcell Young.

Even with the revolving door on defence the Eskimos have allowed an average of 24.2 points a game, second only to Calgary, and have given up a league-best 309.8 yards of total offence a game.

Jones said the rash of injuries have actually drawn the Eskimos closer together as a team.

“I really believe the reason why that is, is we spend so much time together on and off the field, together as a group,” he said. “The starters are talking to each other. The starters are talking to (the backups). We have the same communication from top to bottom.

“Everybody is on the same page and knows what is going on. It seems like it has been seamless and easy to plug new people in. Those people are always around, always talking the same (terms), seeing the same things. That’s’ the reason why we’ve been having some success with the next man up.”

The injuries took a strange twist in the win over BC when Eskimo kicker Sean Whyte hurt his leg. Long-snapper Ryan King handled kickoff duties until he was also was injured. That forced defensive end Odell Willis to handle kickoffs.

“I’ve never seen that (before) let along be part of it,” Jones said about the bizarre series of events. “That was brand new for me. I will never forget that. That was crazy.”

Jones has already tied his career high in tackles after just five games (Esks.com)

Jones, has been a bit of a vagabond during his career. After high school he played two seasons for the community college Garden City Boncbusters. He then moved to the University of Wyoming. Over two years as a starter he recorded 162 tackles and four sacks in 25 games and was team captain in his senior year.

Jones wasn’t taken in the 2013 NFL Draft but spent time in the Arizona Cardinals’ camp. After that there were stints with the BC Lions, NFL’s Green Bay Packers and the Florida Blacktips of the Fall Experimental Football League.

After spending 2015 in Edmonton he moved to Saskatchewan last season where he had 18 defensive tackles, 11 special team tackles and a forced fumble in 13 games.

Jones, who signed with the Eskimos in April, said each stop had its merits.

“I’m a big believer (that) in life you can learn something from every experience, good, bad or indifferent, if you want to,” he said. “I certainly learned things from the organizations, other players and other coaches.”

This week the Eskimos face a Hamilton team that was humiliated 60-1 last week by Calgary. The frustration on the winless Tiger-Cats boiled into a fight on the field during practice this week.

The Eskimos head into the game heavy favourites but it’s a scenario Jones has seen before.

“Me personally, games like this scare me the most,” he said. “You don’t want guys to take them lightly. On paper we can beat anybody. You also have to have respect for your opponent and know they are professionals.

“These guys are fighting for their jobs and respect around the league. They are professionals and they’ve got dangerous weapons. We know they are professional football players and we have to come out and executive and beat them.”