‘Patience’ Could Lead to Special Things with Sidney Jones

PHILADELPHIA (973espn.com) - Sidney Jones met the Philadelphia media for the first time on Friday while still in a walking boot stemming from his torn Achilles at Washington's pro day back on March 11.

The next time the former Huskies star sees us that boot will be long gone but "patience" is the only timetable being discussed when the Eagles talk about their prized cornerback.

Plenty have given timetables for Jones' return, including his surgeon, agent, and the player himself but the only entity that matters in his employer and the Eagles want to take it slow with a player they had rated top-10 on their draft board and possibly could have been selected  at No. 14 overall had he gotten through his pro day unscathed in Seattle.

Instead, that kind of talent was there at No. 43 in the second round and Philly pounced.

The waiting part of this equation could be a problem for Jones, who is set to ditch his boot on May 21.

"No," he answered when asked if he was a patient person by nature.

"It's very testing, especially today in the defensive meeting rooms after practice," Jones continued. "Just watching the film, it was kind of burning me (up) inside not being able to play and everybody is being coached up. ...I just have to watch the other guys do their stuff. It's hard but it's a process."

Philadelphia is certainly familiar with that "process" tag but Jones wasn't using it as a nod toward the 76ers who have had a well-chronicled recent history (some good and some bad) of taking injured players with high ceilings.

The Eagles' medical staff got a look at Jones' Achilles up close last week and coach Doug Pederson insists the organization is "happy" despite the uncertainty.

"At the same time we're not going to put any kind of timetable on him," Pederson said, echoing Howie Roseman's similar statements after the draft. "We're going to do right by him and make sure he's 100 percent before we stick him out there."

Jones' rehab will continue back at the University of Washington in the coming weeks and will obviously start to ramp up once the boot is removed.

"It's very frustrating," Jones admitted when discussing his rehabilitation. "You just take the mental reps and get better in that way, control what you can control."

And trust that process.

"When I get back out there, it's going to be special," Jones said.

-John McMullen covers the Eagles and the NFL for 973espn.com. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen