ORCHARD PARK — DaQuan Jones has a pregame routine and it’s almost always the same.
Before getting into uniform, Jones takes a stroll around the field with fellow defensive linemen Ed Oliver and Greg Rousseau. They talk about football, life or whatever else pops into their minds.
Jones also likes to get a brief sweat going before heading back into the locker room to dress. And that routine was copied by rookie defensive tackles T.J. Sanders and Deone Walker before Sunday’s game against the New York Jets.
Most of what Jones does for the Buffalo Bills happens quietly, on the field and off. As a nose tackle, Jones’ job is to free up other teammates rather than produce a gaudy stat line. And his willingness to offer younger players knowledge accrued over 12 NFL seasons also goes unnoticed sometimes.
Jones is constantly helping Buffalo’s three young defensive tackles — Zion Logue, Sanders and Walker — in any way that he can. He’s looking to win a Super Bowl and he feels teaching young players is what’s going to get him there.
“I play this game because I love it, I enjoy it,” Jones told GNN Sports Tuesday. “I do want a ring at the end of the day and if you’re withholding information from someone and not trying to help them because of your own ego, you’re just not in it for the right reasons for me. You might make a lot of money, call it a day and go on with life — which is fine — but I want to win.”
Before the Jets game, Jones offered high praise for Logue, who was about to get his first game action of the season as a practice squad call-up. Logue played two games last season after being signed off Atlanta’s practice squad.
Logue was thrust into action five days after signing, playing 20 snaps in place of Oliver, who was recovering from an ankle injury. Sound familiar? Logue then played 16 snaps the following week against the Jets.
He was a healthy scratch the next three weeks, released and signed to the practice squad when the Bills signed veterans Jordan Phillips and Quinton Jefferson. Logue admits his head was spinning during his first two games with the Bills, adjusting not only to the NFL but Buffalo’s defensive scheme.
But Logue got to spend most of last season in meeting rooms and on the practice field, watching how Jones operated and listening to what he had to say. And Logue tallied ½-sack against the Jets.
“Nose isn’t a beautiful position, but he does a lot of the dirty work for the defense the naked eye of a football fan may not understand,” Logue said. “D.Q., as a pro, showed me a lot just how to go about day-to-day stuff. How to take care of my body, how to think about the game, how to look at the game, how to watch film. … I believe he had good vets when he was a rookie and now he’s just doing the same.”
Jones isn’t just a mentor, though. He’s been solid during the first two games of the season and notched a sack against the Jets.
Entering the final year of his second two-year contract with the Bills, Jones took the blame last year for Oliver’s sack totals declining from 9 ½ to three last year. He claimed that he wasn’t doing enough to keep double-teams off Oliver.
Jones was off to the best start of his career in 2023, notching four tackles for a loss and 2 ½ sacks in the first five games before tearing a pectoral muscle in Week 5, forcing him to miss six games. And last year, Jones had five TFLs and 2 ½ sacks in 16 games.
“I think I’ve done what they’ve asked me to do as part of the defense,” Jones said. “I feel like I’m understanding the techniques and how to apply it out there on the field. You go against your offense in training camp and now it’s different stuff. People run different schemes and block differently. … There are different blocking schemes you apply to what they’re teaching here. I feel good. I’m enjoying it right now.”
The Bills showed how much confidence they have that the 33-year-old still has juice left in him against the Jets. Jones has played 3-technique during his career — lining up between the guard and tackle — but he has mostly been a 1-tech during his time with the Bills, lining up between the guard and center.
The 3-tech is the penetrator, the guy who gets the big box scores, while the 1-tech is the nose tackle, whose job for the most part is to keep blockers off his teammates. With Oliver out Sunday, the Bills could have brought up Jordan Phillips from the practice squad or put Walker at that spot.
Instead, they opted to put Jones at 3-technique beside Walker to start the game and depending on who was in the game next to him, that’s where he played on 18 of his 22 snaps. And Jones produced early in the game, exploding off the ball to beat a double-team that allowed Matt Milano to shoot through the gap for a 3-yard loss.
Jones isn’t stubborn enough to think there’s nothing left to learn at this state of his career, even if it’s picking up a trick from a rookie.
“I want to be able to make people around me better,” Jones said. “At the same time I’m doing that, I can learn from the young guys. They can learn from me and T.J. can teach me techniques in the rush and I can add it to my game and it’s a river full of knowledge and it goes both ways.”
NOTES: DT Ed Oliver (ankle) and LB Matt Milano (pectoral) did not practice Tuesday, but Bills coach Sean McDermott said Milano could “potentially” practice Wednesday. … NCB Taron Johnson (quad), DB Cam Lewis (shoulder) and LB Shaq Thompson (hamstring/hand) were limited Tuesday. … DT Jordan Phillips did not practice Tuesday, but teams aren’t required to play practice squad players on the injury report.