One of Nebraska’s best players may have his season in some jeopardy due to a major knee injury.
Cornerback Chris Jones has undergone surgery to repair a meniscus in his left knee, Nebraska head coach Mike Riley has confirmed (according to Nebraska beat reporter Sean Callahan of Huskers Online). While a definitive timeline for his recovery has not been mapped out, the typical recovery time for such an injury typically falls anywhere between four and six months. If you do the math real quickly in your head, that means Jones may not return until sometime in November at the earliest if the timeline sticks. Missing six months would eliminate any possibility to play in a bowl game as well, in all likelihood.
Nebraska's top defensive player Chris Jones will be out potentially four to six months with a knee injury. Major, major blow. #Huskers pic.twitter.com/G9iJZE8rSD
— Sean Callahan (@Sean_Callahan) July 15, 2017
That really is a tough blow for Nebraska. Jones was to be one of three returning starters with veteran experience in the Nebraska secondary, which is one of Nebraska’s deepest units on the team. While the safety positions will still be anchored by trusted players Aaron Williams and Joshua Kalu, the cornerback position is suddenly raw on experience. For a team transitioning to a 3-4 system, that could put some pressure on defensive coordinator Bob Diaco to make sure his linebackers are in their positions to cover as much space as accurately as they can.
Jones recorded 37 tackles last season, 33 of which were solo tackles. Jones also picked off three passes and returned one for a touchdown and notched one sack.