Funviralpark It also reportedly prompted an NFL investigation.
The hit occurred during Saturday’s game between New England and the Cincinnati Bengals. Cincinnati linebacker Jermaine Pratt groped Jones down the left side line and returned what Jones supposedly chased. Bengals cornerback Apple trailed the play as he also chased Patriots receiver Tycan Thornton.
As Apple chased Thornton, Jones dove low in front of Apple’s feet and knocked him down.
Officials ruled that Jones threw an imperfect pass instead of fumbling the ball, and the return did not live up to the Bengals’ 22–18 win. After the game, Apple candidly assessed Jones’ steep drop.
“He tripped me up,” Apple told reporters. “I thought it was a dirty play. He’s done it before. I’ve seen it.”
Jones: Diving was ‘part of the game’
The Boston Globe reported Monday that the NFL is investigating a potential fine. Meanwhile, Jones addressed the play and criticism on Boston sports radio WEEI. He defended the dive as “a split second decision”.
“I got down in front of him and tried to stop him from slowing Tyquan down. Tyquan could obviously tackle there. jones said“I mean, I tried to go down in front of him to stop a faster guy from catching up to another faster guy. It’s a split-second decision and there’s a lot involved in that.”
He then likened the play to a hit to pocket as a quarterback.
“I certainly don’t intend to hurt anyone with that play, and I don’t think that’s all there is to it when you’re playing quarterback.” [the defense is trying to do]. I also hit a lot. We are all playing hard. it’s just part of the game. “
Eagles cornerback Darius Slay clearly disagrees with Jones’ assessment that his play is “part of the game.” NFL reporter Dov Kleiman tweeted that he deemed videos of past Jones plays “dirty,” prompting tweets from Slay expressing enthusiastic agreement.
Jones regressed in his second season after quarterbacking the Patriots into the playoffs as a rookie. Now he can add a chorus of dirty play accusations to his predicament.
