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Marcus Jones Wants Patriots 'Punching at the Ball' With Turnover Margin at Minus-7
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- Marcus Jones Wants Patriots 'Punching at the Ball' With Turnover Margin at Minus-7
(Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images)
The New England Patriots have forced seven turnovers through seven games, four interceptions and three fumble recoveries, and their offense has given the ball away 14 times. That leaves a minus-7 turnover differential, 31st in the NFL, heading into Sunday's game at the Miami Dolphins .
Cornerback Marcus Jones has one of those four interceptions.
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New England is 4-1 this season in games where it forces at least one turnover and 0-2 when it does not, according to ESPN's Mike Reiss . The two games without a takeaway were the 13-10 loss at Seattle in the opener and the 30-24 loss to the Chicago Bears on Oct. 22. Last season, the Patriots finished plus-3, with 19 takeaways and 16 giveaways. Roundtable's self-scouting of the first seven games ranked the 14 giveaways second-to-last in the league.
Punching at the ball is nothing new to Jones. The Patriots have been doing it for a long time, he said, and people are only now catching on.
"I would say we always talk about turnover margin is very important," Jones said. "We always talk about trying to get takeaways. But then again, you've got to do it within the schemes. There are going to be times whenever you can, and sometimes it's going to be difficult."
"But we always talk about punching at the ball, making sure we do those things," Jones continued. "Stabbing the pocket is the most important thing at the ball."
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Picking Spots
Jones also has a sack this season, playing all over the formation in a secondary that has been missing pieces. Cornerback Carlton Davis III has missed four of the first seven games with a neck injury, and he is listed as questionable Sunday after practicing in full all week.
Davis grew up in Miami Gardens, minutes from Hard Rock Stadium, and Sunday would be his first game since Oct. 4.
Players who have been on the same page for a long time help the secondary, in Jones' view, and he and Davis have made a lot of plays together since last season.
"I think it's one of those situations of knowing," Jones explained. "Let's just say if you're the last person there, getting the person down is the most important thing. Whenever you are having another teammate right next to you, now you can kind of go after the ball."
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"So just picking and choosing when to go after the ball, but at the end of the day, get the player down," Jones added.
Jones signed a three-year, $36 million contract extension in October 2025. He finished that regular season with three interceptions, two forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries, and he returned two punts for touchdowns. One of those interceptions went back for a touchdown at Cincinnati on Nov. 23, 2025.
Miami's Run Game
The Dolphins are 1-5 under coach Jeff Hafley, but they beat the New York Jets 28-25 last Sunday for their first win. Miami averages 131.5 rushing yards per game, seventh in the NFL, even after losing De'Von Achane to a season-ending knee injury in September.
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Quarterback Malik Willis can make any play he wants once he gets outside the pocket, and he can run away from defenders when he does. Jones wants the Patriots to keep their depth on blitzes and not rush past him.
"Controlling what we can control. I always talk about controlling the controllables," Jones said. "As we can tell, Miami, like, they're a great team. They have a little bit more grit than they've had before. You definitely tell it's a new regime, and they have guys that are stepping up and making plays."
"So we know what we're good at. We know what they're good at," Jones continued. "They're running the ball very good right now, and stopping the run is very important."
Willis has 223 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns on 35 carries through six games. New England allows 95.3 rushing yards per game, eighth in the league, and has held opponents to 20.4 points per game.
The Patriots are 4-3 and 2-0 in the AFC East. Kickoff at Hard Rock Stadium is set for 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday on CBS.
