‘He’s always been this guy’: Jaguars WR Zay Jones has career day against Cowboys

When the Jaguars lost to the Detroit Lions three weeks ago, it was a low point for receiver Zay Jones. He said as much as he tried to play through a chest injury and dropped multiple catchable passes in the 40-14 drubbing.

Fast forward to Sunday's win against the Cowboys and after Jones’ three touchdown day, he’s feeling “amazing” as Jacksonville prepares to face the Jets on Thursday.

“It felt amazing, man,” Jones said on Monday during a press conference at TIAA Bank Field. “Glory to God, too, because it felt amazing. It was a moment of overcoming what personally I was going through and to be there, but it was quite special.”

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Jones recorded six receptions for 109 yards with three touchdowns in Jacksonville’s 40-34 victory against the Cowboys, cementing a career-best day for touchdown receptions and noting the second time this season he’s topped 100-yards in a game. But one of his teammates wanted him to get even more scores.

“I said, ‘let's get you one more bro,’” Marvin Jones said after the game while smiling. Marvin had a four-touchdown performance as a member of the Lions in 2019. “I said, ‘let's get you one more so you can join the four-touchdown club with me and a few others.’ But it’s nice, it’s fun being a part of it. And he's just gonna continue to flourish and ball.”

In his first season in Jacksonville, Zay has 74 catches for 764 yards and five touchdowns. He’s played 13 games and is a piece of a renovated wide receiving core that’s boosted second-year quarterback Trevor Lawrence into a more-prominent spotlight.

According to his wide receiver room, Zay has always been this guy and now he’s getting a chance to show it.

“I mean, it's from Day One,” Christian Kirk said on Sunday. “I mean, he's shown it and I think now that he's getting the opportunities that he deserves, he's starting to show everybody that he's always been this guy.

“Now he's, he's showing that he can take over games and he's been doing it since he got here and just super proud of him. And, you know, the confidence level is through the roof.”

In six seasons in the NFL, Jones has 245 receptions, 2,648 with 16 receiving touchdowns. He’s played for three different teams but seems to have found a home in Jacksonville.

“I think that growing and enjoying the space you’re in and accepting that challenge, I think that is something that I’ve been adapting to and learning over the duration of the season,” Zay said Monday.

A major part of that growth is playing with Trevor Lawrence this season. Zay has spoken at length throughout the season about how good Lawrence is — on and off the field. Monday was no different as Zay recanted how he found out about the wild pass Lawrence completed to him to set up the game-tying field goal.

Lawrence zipped a pass through a Dallas player’s arms and into the waiting grasp of Zay to set up the 48-yard field goal that sent the game into overtime.

“I'm sitting at home. And it was my brother, Cayleb, who was like, ‘Bro, you gotta check out Trevor's throw,’” he said. “He shows me the camera angle. And I was like, wow, it's incredible. It's an incredible play that he was able to make. I mean, rolling to the left, right-handed quarterback. Didn't bat an eye. [He] didn't blink. Complete confidence, he just let it rip.”

As Jacksonville continues its playoff push, Zay’s consistency and connection with Lawrence can go a long way for the team’s hopes of the post-season.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Zay Jones has career day vs. Dallas Cowboys