MIAMI GARDENS — Miami Dolphins nose tackle Benito Jones has made the jump from undrafted player and practice squad member of the past for the Dolphins to a bona fide starter in the NFL with the Detroit Lions last year.
Now, he’s back where his NFL journey started for him as an improved version of himself looking to bring with him what earned him a role in Detroit.
Jones, who is a mammoth 335 pounds and can clog the A gaps on either side of the opposing team’s center, came into the NFL as an undrafted rookie in 2020 out of Ole Miss. He played six games that initial season, but he was mostly on the practice squad between that season and 2021.
Again not making the Dolphins after training camp 2022, Jones was picked up by the Lions. He played all 17 games as a rotational player off the bench that year and did the same last year — but with 15 starts in 2023.
“Went up there and played some really good ball, learned a lot up there. Glad to be back,” Jones said recently at Dolphins camp.
“I’m definitely a different player. Going into my fifth year, I’ve seen a lot of ball. Just come in, try to be an asset to the defense.”
Jones, playing the most snaps he has in his career last season, totaled 26 tackles and a sack last year for the Lions, occupying blockers in the middle so his linebackers could roam free against the run. He said getting more reps helped him grow as a player.
Lions coach Dan Campbell, formerly a Miami assistant and interim coach in 2015, had a witty take on Jones’ departure at the annual league meeting in March.
“It’s funny, but we get him from Miami and he goes back to Miami. So, well, you’re getting a better player, so I’m glad we could help and develop him,” Campbell said with a smile.
Jones certainly has the right mindset to play the gritty position deep in the trenches that not many in the league can do.
“In this league, playing nose guard, you have to be a savage type of guy, a grimy guy,” he said. “That’s a hard job to play, just sit in the middle, anchor down and just do the dirty work. You’re not known for making plays. Just take it to somebody else.”
Just because Jones solidified himself as a starter with the Lions last season doesn’t mean he has the starting nose tackle job, vacated by the departure of Raekwon Davis, locked down in his return to the Dolphins. He has fellow offseason acquisition Teair Tart to hold off there, but Jones has been fairly consistent in the middle during camp.
And new Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver figures to rotate his defensive linemen regardless. The Dolphins are unlikely to see the high snap counts up front of the now-departed Christian Wilkins and Zach Sieler, although Sieler proved capable of doing it.
“Oh man, I love my big guys,” Weaver said. “I love the way Benito is playing. Those guys, they’re grinders and they don’t get a lot of headlines. They don’t get a lot of credit, but he’s one of those guys that’s out there each and every single day and he’s the same guy. He’s consistent every day in his actions.”
Jones’ first stint in Miami actually dates back to the start of defensive line coach Austin Clark’s tenure, so his position coach with the Dolphins has familiarity with him.
“What’s cool to see with Benito, how he’s grown, is his understanding of different blocks and he’s played in different schemes,” Clark said. “I think he did a great job in Detroit last year, and we were fired up to get him back. From a maturity level standpoint, in how he practices and he operates, has been great so far.”
The consistency Weaver noted of Jones hasn’t yet been there for Tart, according to Clark.
“He has some power to his game. That’s definitely the thing that Teair has,” Clark said. “The thing for him, right now, is consistency. Let’s eliminate the flash plays, and let’s be consistent in both the run game and the pass game.”
Said Jones of the competition: “It’s an upstairs decision. The only thing we’re going to do is compete every day.”
Jones, his second time around with the Dolphins, is surely motivated to prove he has taken another step in his game, bringing the same hunger he did as an undrafted rookie.
“Coming in undrafted, I always had a chip on my shoulder just to get on the field,” Jones said. “When you get the opportunity, just take full advantage of it.”
