Bears Coach Sounds Off on Velus Jones Jr.’s Future as Returner

Getty Velus Jones Jr. could get a shot at being the Bears' primary returner again in 2023.

Velus Jones Jr. is going to have his work cut out for him trying to win back his job as the Chicago Bears’ primary return specialist in 2023, but his special teams coordinator has no regrets about benching him during his rookie year.

Bears special teams coordinator Richard Hightower spoke with reporters following May 31’s OTA practice and was asked about Jones’ progress heading into Year 2 after his rookie season in 2021 featured multiple fumbles and his eventual midseason benching.

Unsurprisingly, Hightower had mostly good things to say about the former third-round pick as a coach who traditionally avoids criticizing his players for poor performances. He did, however, add a little “oomph” to his praise when asked directly if he had any regrets about not giving Jones another chance on punt returns to close out the year.

“No, I don’t,” Hightower said, via Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune. “Everything that happens to you, you learn from it. I see a kid that is even more eager now because he knows, ‘I want to be out there.’ He comes back with a totally different mindset. He looks different.”

Velus Jones Struggled as Rookie But Improved Late

A major reason why Chicago invested in Jones during the 2022 draft was his upside as a dynamic punt and kick returner. Over his 59 games at Tennessee, he fielded more than 120 kickoff returns and took two the house for touchdowns, pushing his yard-per-return average to a career-high mark (27.3) during his final season in 2021. He also adopted punt returner duties in 2021, averaging 15.1 yards on 18 total punts.

The high expectations for Jones’ return game crashed into a brick wall before the midway point in his rookie season, though, as his mistakes started adding up quickly.

After missing the first three games with a hamstring injury, Jones made his NFL returner debut in Week 4 against the New York Giants and muffed a critical punt with 2:14 left in the game that allowed the Giants to effectively seal their victory over the Bears. Two weeks later, Jones muffed another punt against Washington that set up the Commanders for a go-ahead touchdown from Chicago’s own 6-yard line.

Jones did not return another punt for the rest of the season and was eventually made a healthy scratch for two games (Weeks 9 and 10), a consequence of his mistakes.

What often gets forgotten about Jones’ rookie season, however, is how he responded to the adversity late in the season, while the Bears were barreling toward a 3-14 finish. The first kickoff he fielded back in the lineup he took 55 yards to Atlanta’s 35-yard line, setting up an eventual Justin Fields touchdown pass. He returned another 15 kickoffs down the stretch and averaged 30 yards per return, taking four for 40 or more yards.

Jones also started cracking the code on how to bring his speed and big-play potential to the Bears offense. Over the final seven games of 2022, he caught four passes for 83 yards and added six carries for 62 yards as well as his first career rushing touchdown, looking like an ideal fleet-footed weapon for Chicago on reversals and jet sweeps. It might have felt like an insignificant amount of improvement in the context of the Bears’ losing season, but it was also an encouraging sign for him heading into his first full NFL offseason.

Bears Want Returner Job to ‘Shake Out on the Field’

GettyVelus Jones Jr. #12 of the Chicago Bears runs for yards in the second half of a game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on November 27, 2022 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

The Bears are naturally going to be hoping for signs of marked improvement from Jones heading into his second season, but by no means are they declaring him the frontrunner for the return specialist role for 2023 with other competitors in the field.

The Bears re-signed veteran wide receiver Dante Pettis — who took over punt return duties permanently in Week 7 after Jones lost the privilege — back in April and are also expecting him to vie for returner responsibilities in 2023. While he never looked as explosive as Jones and finished with a modest 9.1 yards per punt return, Hightower said on May 31 that he has been encouraged by Pettis’ growth between seasons in the role.

Additionally, the Bears added more competition for Jones on kick returns with running back Travis Homer, who signed a two-year deal with Chicago at the start of free agency. He averaged 24.7 yards on 18 career kickoff returns over his four seasons with Seattle and even took one to the house during the 2021 season, something the Bears haven’t done since Cordarrelle Patterson did it against Minnesota during the 2020 season.

“It’s gonna shake out on the field, but we believe in all of our players,” Hightower said of the returner competition. “We think they all have the ability to do their job, the ones we have back there, and we’re continuing to develop them. They are both looking better than they were looking last year, both Dante and Velus. And we’ve got some more young kids, so we’re excited about that group. They’ve been out there catching a lot of balls, catching a lot of live balls. Coach [Omar] Young and Coach [Tyke] Tolbert, all those guys have been doing a phenomenal job working with them back there.

“It’s arrows up on both of those two.”