Patriots punt returner Marcus Jones broke a 75-year-old NFL record Monday night.
The record for most yards per punt return belonged to former Bears punt returner George McAfee, who played from 1940 to 1950 and averaged 12.78 yards returning punts during his career. To qualify for this record, a player needs at least 75 career punt returns.
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Monday night, Jones made a spectacular play on the 75th punt return of his career, taking it back 94 yards for a touchdown. Jones finished the night with three punt returns for 124 yards, giving him 77 punt returns for 1,127 yards in his career. This gives him a career average of 14.64 yards per punt return, breaking McAfee’s record by almost two full yards.
After the game, Jones credited his father and his blockers.
“Every time my dad took me to a parking lot when I was 4, he would throw the ball in the air and say, ‘Follow her.’ That’s the first thing I thought of,” Jones said. “It’s a long journey with punt returns. Not everyone wants to do it. I find a lot of joy when it comes to that. At the end of the day, since I’ve been in the league, I would say the guys who blocked for me, I praise them 24/7. Without them, I couldn’t gain any yards.”
Jones knows opposing punters often give him high and short punts because they want to limit returns, and he says he has to find a balance between being aggressive and smart.
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“The main thing is decision making,” Jones said. “Of course I want to be aggressive, but I also have to be smart at the same time. Every time there are punts, I have to go ahead and catch correctly, but I try to take advantage of every opportunity that presents itself, so whenever I have time, I try to make a play.”
Jones made numerous plays during his NFL career.
