Reunited with Sean Payton, running back Tony Jones Jr. ready to 'do anything' to help Broncos

Jun. 19—Tony Jones Jr. won't soon forget March 22, 2023. Not only did he get married that day, but he also got a job.

Jones was in Palm Coast, Fla., preparing to wed Rebecca, whom he had been dating for eight years. His phone rang several hours before the services.

"Sean (Payton) called me the morning of my wedding to sign me," Jones said. "So I got two good news (happenings) on that day. That was a great day."

Payton had been named the previous month as head coach of the Broncos, and he knew Jones well. That's because Jones was a New Orleans running back in 2020 and 2021, Payton's final two seasons as coach of the Saints.

After getting married, Jones and his wife went on a honeymoon to Fairbanks, Alaska. Then it was time for business when he reported for offseason workouts, which got underway April 11 and concluded last Thursday.

By all accounts, spring drills went well for Jones. The Broncos made several moves with running backs, including bringing in Jacques Patrick from the XFL to perhaps challenge Jones for a roster spot. But Patrick soon was cut, leaving Jones seemingly in decent position to be the No. 3 back behind Javonte Williams and Samaje Perine.

The other running backs on the roster are second-year man Tyler Badie, who has one career carry, and undrafted rookie Jaleel McLaughlin. Neither has the familiarity of having played for Payton.

"I'm a hard worker," Jones said when asked what he showed in New Orleans for Payton to want to sign him. "Coach knows that I'll do anything for the team to win. I'll play guard, center. I'm smart. I'm a hard runner. Sean saw something."

Jones was undrafted out of Notre Dame in 2020 and didn't exactly put up gaudy stats in 2.5 seasons with the Saints and while spending the second half of last year with Seattle. He has 179 career rushing yards, including 142 with New Orleans in 2021, and has a career average of just 2.6 yards per carry.

But Jones stressed he did much more than carry the ball when previously playing for Payton.

"Sean had me lead blocking, pass pro," Jones said. "Sean had me on the back on kickoff returns. Like a whole bunch of stuff. Teams see that I'm very versatile, so that's good."

Williams is the projected starting running back as he continues to make progress after suffering a serious knee injury last October. Perine is in line to be No. 2 back and expected to receive a good number of carries.

The team's No. 3 guy will be expected to play special teams and carry the ball if one of the top two backs is out. And former Broncos tackle Ryan Harris said not to sell Jones short as a ball carrier.

Harris, who played for the Broncos from 2007-10 and in 2015, is Notre Dame's radio analyst. He looked on as the 5-foot-11, 224-pound Jones rushed for 857 yards and averaged 6.0 yards per carry during his final season with the Fighting Irish in 2019.

"He brings size to the running back position," Harris said. "Tony Jones Jr. is exactly what you need to continue to have a threat at running back. He's never afraid to lower his shoulders. He's a physical, big back who has speed enough to get away from defenders."

Harris was impressed with the "explosive plays" Jones had at Notre Dame. He pointed to the 176 rushing yards he had in a 30-27 win over USC in 2019, which included a 43-yard jaunt.

Jones hasn't gotten many rushing attempts in his three NFL seasons. But he did carry 11 times for 50 yards when the Saints opened the 2021 season with a 38-3 win over Green Bay.

Payton saw enough of Jones to make him one of six players from his Saints days brought to Denver. The others are wide receivers Marquez Callaway and Lil'Jordan Humphrey, tight ends Adam Trautman and Chris Manhertz and fullback Michael Burton.

After Jones signed with the Broncos, he was a popular guy. He said about 10 teammates reached out to ask about Payton.

"Guys asked, 'Is Sean kind of like a rah-hah coach? Was he going to work guys harder?' " Jones said. "I would tell them, 'Sean's going to work you but Sean's also going to give you the time and tools to recover. Sean's a smart guy, and he's going to put us in the right spot to win."'

When Jones previously was with Payton, the Saints went 12-4 and won the NFC South in 2020 and 9-8 in 2021. And since March 22, he has been thinking about doing some more winning with Payton.