It's been more than one season since Velus Jones Jr. last suited up for the Chicago Bears. The franchise selected him in the third round of the 2022 draft, hoping he'd help both the offense and special teams unit with his shiftiness and dual-threat ability.
As Bears fans know all too well at this point, this wasn't the case at all. Jones spent three years with the team as one of the most underwhelming players on a disappointing offense. They tried to get something out of him by helping him transition from wide receiver to running back, but to no avail.
Ultimately, with Jones struggling with everything asked of the wide receiver turned running back, the Bears had no choice but to part ways. He's been with four organizations since then, yet it seems the Bears still live rent-free in his head. At least, that's what people can get from his latest sit-down with Bears reporter Jason Lieser.
Velus Jones Jr. Takes Another Shot At The Bears
“It was the most relieving thing ever,” Velus told Lieser during an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times. “With my mental health, no spotlight being on you, just being able to — when I got to Jacksonville, I had some of the best practices of my life.”
Jones has logged a total of nine regular-season carries since the Bears moved on from him, so it's not like he's been making them regret the decision. At least, for his sake, Jones was fortunate enough to be with the Seattle Seahawks when star running back Zach Charbonnet suffered a season-ending injury, perhaps lucking his way into a Super Bowl ring.
While he claims that he has no animosity or hard feelings toward the Bears, his social media activity suggests otherwise. He posted a laughing face emoji after the Bears' playoff elimination, and people were quick to connect the dots. Even so, he claimed that he didn't care about any of that:
“People are going to take things how they want anyway,” Jones said. “I don’t have to explain myself to nobody... People are going to make whatever out of it. If you’re salty and bitter, you need to look in the mirror, because I’m happy, I’m blessed, I’m at the Super Bowl."
At the end of the day, Jones will play in the final game of the season -- or at least be on that team -- so he has some bragging rights. Then again, there's a big difference between being a bus rider or a passenger, and barring a shocking turn of events, he's not likely to get more than a couple of touches, if any.