Jones says he has been medically cleared and is ready to go.
Georgia linebacker Jarvis Jones has dismissed reports his health concerns are forcing NFL teams to reconsider his draft potential.
A fortnight ago, Pro Football Talk reported that Jones’ neck issues had prompted several teams to remove him from their draft boards due to the real risk of him suffering a serious setback.
Jones suffered the injury in 2009 and was sidelined for the entire 2010 season. The 23-year-old was later diagnosed with spinal stenosis with USC refusing to allow him to continue playing for them and recommending for him to retire.
However, he moved on to Georgia where he was medically cleared to re-start his playing career and re-established himself but sat out of the recent NFL Scouting Combine workouts.
The linebacker has scoffed at the reports and reassured all concerned he is fine, and that he is unaware of any teams removing him from their draft plans.
“That ain’t true,” he told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“People are still talking to me. Nobody has taken me off the board. The doctor said I was fine and cleared me and the combine went well for me. I was cleared medically. Teams know my situation. Everything went great. I did everything they asked me to do.”
Jones will be looking to back up his claims at Georgia’s pro day on March 21, with NFL teams closely assessing his physical skills and looking for any signs of concern.
For now it appears as though Jones is confident of his chances in the draft, but whether teams feel the same way and are willing to take on that risk will become clearer the closer we get to the draft on April 25.
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