Of all the storylines we've been following at Patriots training camp, there's one we might be overlooking: New England is playing without the No. 1 cornerback on its depth chart.
Jonathan Jones has been sidelined with an undisclosed injury since Aug. 4, with no word on the nature or severity of his ailment. MassLive's Karen Guregian provided a Jones update Friday, however, reporting that the veteran cornerback "should be back" for the Patriots' regular-season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sept. 10.
"According to a source, the team is being careful with him, but he 'seems to be OK,' and should be ready to go in a couple of weeks," Guregian and MassLive's Chris Mason wrote Friday of Jones.
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That's good news for the Patriots, who relied heavily on Jones last season as their top boundary cornerback. The 29-year-old was on the field for 79.1 percent of New England's defensive snaps in 2022 -- third-most on the team behind safety Devin McCourty and linebacker Ja'Whaun Bentley -- and rewarded the team with career highs in interceptions (four) and passes defensed (11).
Reinforcements arrived at cornerback this offseason in rookie first-round pick Christian Gonzalez, who projects as the team's starting right corner entering Week 1. But there's reason to question the depth behind Jones and Gonzalez: second-year corner Jack Jones, the team's only other outside cornerback, is facing potential criminal charges after he was arrested in June on weapons charges, while Myles Bryant and Marcus Jones have worked more as slot corners.
In short, the Patriots could use Jonathan Jones on the field Sept. 10 when they face A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and a potent Eagles passing attack.