New England QB Mac Jones’ decision to go low on Bengals defensive back Eli Apple during a Cincinnati fumble-return-that-wasn’t in last Sunday’s win over the Patriots at Gillette Stadium has drawn a lot of attention and criticism.
Earlier this week on WEEI, Jones explained that he “had no intention to hurt anybody” on the play for which he will reportedly be fine more than $11,000 by the NFL.
Regardless of his intentions, many have not only called the hit on Apple dirty but also lumped it in with a handful of other questionable actions from Jones over his first two NFL seasons to label the New England quarterback as a dirty player.
During his Wednesday afternoon press conference at Gillette Stadium, Jones was asked about that narrative that he’s a dirty player, if that’s just outside noise and how he reacts to it?
“I think obviously that’s a big part of it, is everybody has an opinion and the biggest thing for me is focusing on being the best teammate I can be and earning the respect of the people in this building and the people I care about,” Jones said. “Obviously, I have respect for everybody around the league. It takes a lot to get to this league. There’s really good players out there, and we’re all playing hard and trying to win. At the end of the day, you have to keep that in mind. It’s a game and you want to just have fun, enjoy it and compete against each other. That’s something that I’ve always done and I know my teammates appreciate that about me.”
Jones was also asked if he planned on appealing the fine.
“Really just focused on this week and let everybody else handle that stuff for me,” Jones said. “I’m focused on this week and doing my job. That’s the important part, is every week you look at the game film of the game you just played and then you try to find out what you can do better. I’m kind of in that process right now of what can I do better and how can I execute my job better.”
Jones and the Patriots are preparing to host the Dolphins on Sunday at Gillette Stadium, New England clinging to playoff hopes with a 7-8 record on the season.
