‘It’s Me Versus Me': Versatile Weapon Velus Jones Jr. Aims to Force Way Onto Seahawks Roster
RENTON, Wash. - On his way to the first All-Pro selection of his NFL career, few found success matched up against Ernest Jones manning the middle in coverage for the eventual Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.
Tying for the league lead among linebackers with five regular season interceptions and adding a sixth one in the playoffs, Jones excelled taking away many of the best pass catching running backs and linebackers in the NFL in 2025. But during the dog days of training camp, one player has occasionally proven to be his Kryptonite, and he bears the same namesake, albeit with no relation.
Drawing the assignment of manning up on versatile playmaker Velus Jones Jr. in Tuesday’s 15th camp practice, Jones initially had him covered, sticking to his hip pocket as backup quarterback Drew Lock progressed through his initial read to the right side. But in this case, the do-it-all linebacker wasn’t able to “Keep up with the Joneses,” as the speedy back made a hesitation move faking an inside break before darting back outside, quickly gaining a couple steps of separation on a wheel route.
Even with pressure bearing down on him, Lock showcased his elite arm talent with the flick of a wrist, launching a perfect back-shoulder throw off his back foot to connect on a 20-yard touchdown with Jones, who entered camp listed as a receiver on Seattle’s roster before being slid back to running back after the release of Kenny McIntosh. On that grab, he certainly looked every bit like the converted receiver he is reeling in the pass with soft hands and outstanding body control, proving once again he’s up for the challenge making plays from anywhere.
“It's me versus me. My goal is to be better than yesterday, and so that's the mentality I attack everything with,” Jones said of juggling multiple positions prior to Monday’s practice. “And so anywhere they need me, I'll be pretty versatile. Just enjoying each and every day, trying to push myself to get better and better.”
Dating back to his college career, which included stops at USC and Tennessee before being selected by Chicago in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft, Jones’ calling card has always been his positional flexibility coupled with elite explosiveness, demonstrated by running the 40-yard dash in a blazing 4.31 seconds. But to this point, his career has been defined by being a jack of all trades and a master of none, which has prevented him from latching onto a significant role as an offensive player in the league while bouncing around with multiple teams.
In his first two seasons with the Bears in 2022 and 2023, while seeing extensive action as a special teamer, all but 11 of his 257 offensive snaps came at receiver. Oddly enough, he still had more carries (17) than receptions (11) as a jet sweep and end around artist, averaging 10 yards per touch with two touchdowns. After barely playing for Chicago in 2024, sandwiched around pitstops with the Jaguars, Panthers, and Saints, most of his limited snaps in three games with the Seahawks last year came out of the backfield.
With those opportunities, however, even with all of his touches coming in garbage time during blowout victories, Jones flashed his dynamic wheels and pure athleticism. On just four carries, he tallied 32 yards on the ground, averaging eight yards per tote. Adding in special teams contributions, he did more than enough for Seattle to bring him back on a reserve/future deal in February, and with McIntosh now a free agent and rookie Jadarian Price and Jacardia Wright nursing injuries, he has seized the opportunity cutting his teeth as a dual threat running back in a system well-catered to his skill set.
Most notably, in comparison to his predecessor Klint Kubiak, Fleury has implemented his own version of the Shanahan-style offense that has put a greater emphasis on running backs being involved in the passing game. Echoing words from teammate Emanuel Wilson, Jones acknowledged the Seahawks have expanded the route tree out of the backfield, asking for more out of their backs than just running an occasional swing or Texas route.
“It’s definitely expanding, definitely doing more receiver routes and just with that flexibility to be versatile and not just a running team,” Jones explained. “Because now, that's more pressure on the defensive coordinator. I could be put in the slot, I could be put out wide. Are you gonna put a linebacker on me? Then Sam [Darnold] can check it and throw me the ball. And so it just allows like us to just do like different things that'll put pressure on the coordinator and the defense because now there's more things you have to worry about or look out for.”
Vying for one of the final spots on the 53-man roster, Fleury’s approach plays perfectly into Jones’ greatest asset, which lies in his ability to be a matchup nightmare for linebackers and safeties tasked with covering the converted receiver in space. Ernest Jones learned that the hard way in Tuesday’s practice, but he’s hardly been the only defender on Seattle’s defense who has been exposed by him during two-plus weeks of training camp.
Only a few days earlier in the team’s annual Fan Fest practice at Lumen Field, Jones caught a quick swing pass from Lock as he headed towards the sideline. Starting linebacker Drake Thomas thought he had the back lined up, but he misjudged Jones’ speed and consequently took a poor pursuit angle, barely getting a finger on him as he blew past the defender for what turned into a 30-yard gain.
Earlier in camp, Jones caught a couple other wheel routes downfield for explosive gains, doing so against the likes of safety D’Anthony Bell and linebacker Tyrice Knight, exhibiting over and over again the massive upper hand he has with his receiving skills and speed coming out of the backfield or even running routes from the slot.
“It's a huge advantage and something I'm really confident in,” Jones said. “And now instead of being a DB running with me all the time, which doesn't matter if it's a DB or not, but a linebacker, it's a mismatch for sure. And I'm going to continue to put that on the film and put it on display and everything and just continue to be me and get better.”
Closing in on the preseason opener against the Cowboys on Saturday, Jones still has much to prove if he’s going to snatch one of the Seahawks’ final roster spots. New running back coach Thomas Hammock has dished out some tough love to him during drill work in camp, harping on the details with a player who hasn’t fully dipped into the running back experience up until this point.
Among the areas where Jones knows he must demonstrate progress in exhibition games, pass protection remains his greatest work in progress, largely due to inexperience. In his first four NFL seasons, he stayed in the backfield for blitz pickup on just one single snap, per Pro Football Focus, which came with Seattle last season. Even adding in the preseason, he has had 10 total pass pro snaps in his entire career, and that rawness could be seen with several rough reps in 1-on-1s against linebackers on the first padded practice of the summer.
But to Jones’ credit, he has looked better in team scrimmage periods on the handful of occasions where he’s been asked to stay in as a blocker, doing a better job of keeping his feet chopping at the point of attack and maintaining hands on the targeted defender. And in fairness, if he’s playing many snaps for the Seahawks in the regular season, it would likely be wiser to have him running routes more often than staying in to block from a skill and schematic standpoint.
As a ball carrier, Jones still has some crudity to his game, sometimes relying too much on his speed and not allowing blocks to properly develop in front of him. Particularly in an offense heavy with zone concepts, learning to run with patience, improved decisiveness, and a better understanding of blocking schemes have been points of emphasis for him since returning to the field in the spring, and he’s leaned on everyone from Hammock to his teammates such as Zach Charbonnet and George Holani working to hone those areas.
“I’ll sometimes just be ready to turn on the jets, but you have to let the blocks form and everything. So just working on patience and bettering my vision, but that comes with watching film and talking with the guys,” Jones commented. “It's not just coach [Hammock]. I talk to Zach [Charbonnet], talk to George [Holani], talk to Emanuel [Wilson]. What did you see? What I could have did better? So It's like we're sharpening each other for the better.”
Even in the receiving game, Jones feels he has plenty of room to grow, especially considering routes out of the backfield have distinct differences from ones on the outside. Like with the run game, his speed can actually be a detriment if he isn’t sticking to the fine details, including proper depth for his routes to provide an outlet for his quarterback.
But compared to previous seasons, Jones believes he has developed a much more well-rounded game during his brief time in Seattle, and that refinement has continued to show up stacking strong practice after strong practice this summer. Looking towards the next few weeks, assuming Price and Holani don’t suit up for most - if not all - of the preseason, he should get ample chances to bolster his stock as a unique multi-position weapon in Fleury’s back-friendly offense.
With eyes on making the team, Jones isn’t worrying about what others do over the next few weeks. The ball is in his court and as long as he doesn’t beat himself, playing with as much confidence as he has at any point in his NFL career, he’s confident that he can make a significant impact for the Seahawks as they begin their title defense.
“I'm just being myself, show that I can can pass protect, I'm a physical runner, and just be explosive with the ball in my hand. So I know some things I will get done and some things I'm looking forward to.”
