New role might mean Patriots cornerback is safe from being traded

With the trade deadline just days away, the Patriots made their first expected move after their big win over the Jets by trading linebacker Joshua Uche to the Chiefs. The former second round pick from the 2020 draft had been the subject of trade rumors over the past two years and was almost dealt ahead of the deadline last year.

Instead, Bill Belichick decided to keep Uche, and a year later, the new regime in Foxboro took the opportunity to ship him off for some future draft picks.

He is said to be the first of a few trades the Patriots will get done before next week's deadline, with plenty of players being rumored as the frontrunners to be moved next. Among those on that list is cornerback Jonathan Jones, who has been a solid piece of the team's secondary since he signed as an undrafted free agent in 2016.

Besides making up some great cornerback pairings in the years since, he has also been a great mentor to Christian Gonzalez, who is developing into the lockdown corner the Patriots have longed for since trading Stephon Gilmore. And while Jones remains in that position and has invaluable versatility, he continues to be floated as a potential trade candidate this season.

However, that might no longer be the case.

Jonathan Jones's new role could play a part in the Patriots choosing to forgo trading him

It has been a long time since the Patriots were able to release a victory speech from the locker room this year, so the video from after their win over the Jets was quite a big deal. Besides overcoming the odds stacked against them in Week 8, the win was a much-needed boost to the deteriorating morale, especially over the past two weeks.

With so many captains having gone down with injury this year, fans were looking forward to seeing who would be taking over the "Aww yeah!" duties for the team's latest win.

That's when you see Jones leading the huddle, finally letting out the beloved celebration phrase for the first time in seven weeks, and it might be a sign that the cornerback is not going anywhere before the trade deadline.

Although leading a victory huddle doesn't necessarily mean much at the end of the day, and based on how the new regime wants to put together the Patriots roster moving forward, Jones is a prime candidate to be moved no matter how much of a presence he has on and off the field.

But it's important to remember how crucial it is to have solid leaders in the locker room to help with the younger players' growth and development, on top of maintaining productive veterans the team can lean on, all of which fits Jones to a T.

It doesn't make him untouchable, especially since he could garner the most compensation of most players on the team the Patriots could likely trade, but Jones is crucial to what they're trying to accomplish this year and next, and ridding themselves of another captain doesn't seem like a great idea given how this season has progressed.

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