The NFL’s interception leader wasn’t listed on the Pro Bowl ballot for 2020. The New England Patriots listed cornerbacks Stephon Gilmore and Jason McCourty, but omitted J.C. Jackson.
Jackson, who leads the NFL in interceptions with six and is also first in snaps among Patriots cornerbacks, is set to be a restricted free agent this offseason.
“We listed the two cornerbacks who have started the most games at cornerback and who have the longest tenure, Jason McCourty (9) and Stephon Gilmore (6),” a Patriots spokesperson told Patriots Wire on Wednesday. “If we could list a third CB, we would have listed JC Jackson (4) or Jonathan Jones (6), but (you’re) asked to list the 11 defensive starters.”
NFL teams are bound by how many starters they can submit: 11. But they are not bound by the number of cornerbacks. They’re allowed to list three. The Kansas City Chiefs did, for example. Perhaps New England did not know this, as their statement suggests. That might explain why they listed rookie Anfernee Jennings over Jackson, a player who leads cornerbacks in snaps and has the second-most defensive snaps on the team.
