Texas A&M was already going to have a good defense in 2021. But the announcement by a senior cornerback that he'll return for next season has made it even nastier.
Coming off a career year, Myles Jones could have announced for the 2021 NFL Draft and likely would have heard his name called. Instead, he's decided to stick around in College Station for another season.
Jones took an outstanding performance in training camp into the summer, starting each of the eight games he played in. The 6-foot-4 corner tallied 39 tackles, a tackle for loss, an interception and a team-high 6 passes broken up. His ProFootballFocus score of 76.4 was the third-highest on the defense, and he only allowed 22 receptions on 36 targets during the season.
What it means for 2021
It means the cornerback room is deep, experienced and extremely salty. With Myles Jones returning across from Jaylon Jones, the Aggies now have one of the best corner duos in the SEC for 2021. They also have extremely talented depth, with Brian George and Elijah Blades backing up and Josh Moten a potential breakout player in his second season.
Jones's return also means the Aggies will be able to move at a more deliberate pace when it comes to developing their trio of new corners, Deuce Harmon, Tyreek Chappell and Dreyden Norwood. There likely won't be a pressing need for them to get on the field this season, so if they are out there, they will have earned it.
Jones had an excellent 2020, holding his own against some of the best receivers in the nation and only having one bad outing -- against Alabama, who everyone had a bad outing against. With his return, A&M now has no real question marks in the secondary and depth virtually across the board. It's possible a top-10 defense is even better in 2021 with his return.
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