Barrett Jones Could Miss Season With Back Problems

[Red_Chaos]

Former Alabama All-American Barrett Jones has had back surgery and could miss the NFL season for the second straight year, St. Louis coach Jeff Fisher confirmed to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch after the Rams' preseason game against the Green Bay Packers on Saturday.

The offensive lineman had been out of practice since July 31, and he had not been seen attending the Rams' workouts since he went out. The Post-Dispatch reported Jones had developed lower-back issues at training camp. The Rams waited to see if the issue would settle down with treatment, but it did not.

St. Louis selected Jones in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft, but he did not play last season. Jones had foot surgery to repair a Lisfranc injury after helping Alabama beat Notre Dame in the BCS national championship game to cap the 2012 season.

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Early in training camp, things were looking up for Jones after his "redshirt" NFL season. With regular center Scott Wells out, Jones and Tim Barnes alternated playing the spot with the Rams' first-team offense over the first week of training camp.

"It was great working with the ones," Jones said on July 29. "The pace is much greater. I got so much better today and learned a lot."

Fisher made note of Jones' improvement during the first week of training camp.

"Barrett was coming off the injury and really couldn't do much," Fisher said. "He spent a lot of time in the second half of the year and through the entire offseason in the weight room. He's changed his body. He's gotten much, much more strength inside. His feet are moving a lot."

Jones is one of four two-time consensus All-Americans in Alabama history, joining Leroy Cook, Terrence Cody and C.J. Mosley. Jones played guard, tackle and center for the Crimson Tide. He won the Outland Trophy as the nation's outstanding interior lineman as a tackle in 2011 and the Rimington Trophy as the nation's best center in 2012. He also received the 2012 William V. Campbell Trophy, sometimes called the "Academic Hesiman," from the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame.

 

[Retroram52]

This will be another 3-4 year project like most of the players we seem to be drafting under Snisher. Quick finally appears to be coming around. Jones will join Pead and Givens as possible wasted draft picks. Pead is a definite wasted draft pick with the jury still out on the other two.

 

[mikey728]

I thought he was a real good prospect, but it seems he might be another youngster whose career is over before it ever really had a chance to get started...Don't know for sure, but the term injury prone sure seems to fit him...

 

[zeke2829]

o-lineman + back problem = career over!

 

[4down20]

I thought he was a real good prospect, but it seems he might be another youngster whose career is over before it ever really had a chance to get started...Don't know for sure, but the term injury prone sure seems to fit him...

He's a tough guy. He played in our NCG vs Notre Dame(and pretty much the 2nd half of the season that year) with a lisfranc injury.

If he can play, he will as soon as possible.

Sucks to hear, he's a really really smart lineman and I had high hopes for him.