NEW ORLEANS -- TJ Jones spent last week working his typical job on the practice squad, acting as a scout team receiver and trying to give the Detroit Lions defense as good a look as he can emulating the New Orleans Saints' wideouts.
Then on Sunday, he stepped on the field for the first time this season and faced those same Saints, a practice squad call-up when Marvin Jones started to appear like he couldn’t play because of a thigh injury.
“Late in the week, real late,” TJ Jones said of figuring out when he might get promoted and play. “I just went on my normal week, and if they needed any help during practice I’d help out, but go do my scout team duties, still did full scout team.”
Jones responded to his first real action since Week 16 of last season with three catches for a career-high 49 yards against New Orleans. He ran 11 routes and was targeted four times -- his other target a bad pass by Matthew Stafford that went off Jones’ hands and was almost picked off.
But it was a good season debut for a player that was perhaps Detroit’s most surprising cut at the end of the preseason. Jones appeared to be the Lions’ No. 3 receiver during spring workouts. Then the Lions signed Anquan Boldin just before training camp, pushing Jones down the depth chart.
When the Lions kept only four receivers, Jones was beaten out by Andre Roberts for the final spot, cut and eventually signed to the Detroit practice squad. Meanwhile, he bided his time and waited for an opportunity like Sunday.
“TJ did a nice job,” Lions coach Jim Caldwell said. “After the one that kind of went off his hands early on, he came back and made some real nice catches for us and some big, big-time plays.”
The numbers weren’t huge, but it does leave Detroit with a decision to make whenever Marvin Jones gets healthy. Do the Lions keep TJ Jones -- who might factor in as their future slot receiver since Boldin is 36 years old -- on the active roster the rest of the year or waive him, hope he doesn’t get claimed and put him back on the practice squad.
Detroit players seem to be getting claimed with more frequency lately -- both Saturday cuts, Justin Forsett and Johnthan Banks, were claimed Monday by Denver and Chicago. Bottom-rung teams could be building for 2017, and for a player like Jones, who has shown flashes as a capable receiver and returner, it’s a somewhat risky play to waive him if Detroit has plans for him.
That could be another tough decision for general manager Bob Quinn and Caldwell. Obviously, Jones would prefer to stay on the active 53-man roster.
“That’s up to the coaches and people in the front office,” Jones said. “Hopefully I’ve done enough, and hopefully they trust me to keep working hard and keep progressing and keep getting better week in and week out and keep getting the opportunities to show I can play and I can contribute.”