Allen Park — Against the odds, Jerry Jacobs was soaring. Then an injury clipped his wing.
And through it all, Jacobs looks back on his rookie season — which saw him go from undrafted rookie to Detroit Lions starting cornerback to Pro Football Focus’ top-rated UDFA, before ending with a torn ACL — as a “blessing.”
“Just to look back on it — and I stopped looking (back) on it, because we’re in a new season — but in the past season, I was looking at it, and I was just like, ‘I really played 13 games in the NFL, and actually played good,’” Jacobs told The Detroit News last week.
An undrafted corner out of Arkansas, Jacobs, 25, made the Lions’ 53-man roster out of camp last season and made his first start in Week 5 at Minnesota. In 13 starts with the team, he made 27 tackles and forced a fumble, while earning a 65.8 player grade from PFF, making him the highest-rated Lions corner last season, outside of Mark Gilbert, who played only 40 snaps with the team.
While the rest of the Lions’ secondary prepared to face the New England Patriots’ offense last Sunday, Jacobs was just getting back to work. He’d been in the practice facility all summer, doing “no fun things” while going through a grueling rehab, but as of last week, he’s been cleared to join official practices with the team and must be elevated to the active roster in three weeks.
Though the bye week may hurt his acclimation process, it’s possible that Jacobs could return to the field as early as Detroit’s Week 7 showdown in Dallas. And it sounds like he’s at least hopeful about that return date.
“Coming off that great year, you want to come back and do more. And like, missing the first four games, probably miss five, probably miss the one this week,” Jacobs said, referring to the Patriots game. “Just like, (it gives) you that hunger and that (anger). Like, but I’m good. I’m in a good place. I’m feeling good. I’m almost there to be back on the field.”
One thing that may help Jacobs’ return is the time he spent with the team over the summer. He was always eager to keep learning, even though he wouldn’t be able to supplement it with immediate time on task, safeties coach Brian Duker said.
“Jerry does a good job just being around all the time, trying to stay really connected with football,” Duker said. “Like, he’s always out there, he’s always in meetings. It’s very important to him. He attacks rehab the same way he attacks the playbook and all those things.”
Spending his summer rehabbing was admittedly a bummer, but there were even a couple of reasons for optimism there, too. Jacobs has been through this same injury on the same knee, which he suffered in his final year at Arkansas State (2019). Going through it already helped his mental state this time around, as did the NFL’s advanced medical technology, which produced much quicker returns and early signs of encouragement.
“They got things that get you right. Like, just one comparison I say compared to the knee I tore (first). In three weeks, I was still in a cast, trying to learn how to walk. Three weeks in this one, I’m walking,” Jacobs said.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell last week praised Jacobs’ attitude during rehab and said that, if anything, he was a little too dedicated at times.
“Jerry’s been unbelievable, man. I mean, the amount of work he’s put in, I mean, he’s a guy since the time he had the injury and began his rehab, that we’ve had to push him away at times to give him a break,” Campbell said. “He has been relentless in his process to get better, and he’s been all-in.”
Much like last year, his added presence to a reeling secondary couldn’t come at a better time. Defensive captain and starting safety Tracy Walker (Achilles) is out for the year; safeties Will Harris (groin), Ifeatu Melifonwu (ankle) and Saivion Smith (head/neck) were all forced out of Sunday’s game because of injuries; cornerbacks Amani Oruwariye and JuJu Hughes had been playing at a level that saw them as healthy scratches before the Patriots game.
On top of it all, the Lions are on pace to allow the most points per game in NFL history. But things weren’t much better when Jacobs got his first start in Week 5 last season, when the team was 0-4.
And, of course, in situations like these, there’s always a fear that the player doesn’t return to the same level he was before getting injured. Well, there’s usually that fear — according to Campbell, he doesn’t really have those concerns with Jacobs.
“He’s done everything we’ve asked, and so, I see him coming back better than ever, stronger than ever. Now he’s going to have to get his legs under him,” Campbell said.
“He just started practice this week, and so he’s good. And once he gets the flow of football again, it’ll take a little bit, but he’s been outstanding. He really has.”
nbianchi@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @nolanbianchi