Bengals High 5: Five questions with Adam Jones

On several occasions this week, multiple Cincinnati Bengals players have singled out cornerback Adam Jones as one of the biggest reasons the team is holding opponents to 17.8 points per game, the fourth-lowest total in the league.

Not only is Jones taking away the opponent’s top receiving threat with a team-leading nine passes defended, he has been a huge factor in the run game with his 42 tackles ranking second on the team.

Then there are his contributions on special teams, where he is one of the league leaders in punt returns, and an argument can be made that the 32-year-old Jones belongs in the conversation for team MVP at the halfway point of the season.

Asked if he thinks he’s gotten better each year he has been with the Bengals, Jones declined the chance to make a self-evaluation, saying, “That’s for y’all to figure out.”

But he did answer five other questions for this week’s Bengals High 5:

Q: What's it like being 8-0?

A: Body wise, when your body's hurting, it makes you mentally feel a little bit better knowing that you're 8-0. Certain teams are not 8-0 and their bodies are killing them and it's hard to get through these days. It's good, man. It shows you how much hard work we've put in and you can't take nothing for granted.

Q: Does this playoff run feel different?

A: We haven't got there yet. We'll see. But I know we have never started 8-0, so there's got to be some kind of difference.

Q: Houston coach Bill O'Brien said you broke his heart when he was at Georgia Tech and recruiting you out of high school. What happened?

A: I was committed there. When I put on that West Virginia hat (on signing day), it was like the whole state of Georgia was mad at me. But I think I made a great decision. It was one of the best decisions of my life. My grandma was sick and they were the only school to call and check on me and make sure I was all right. That was the big turning point of where I wanted to go.

Q: Did you have both hats sitting on the table in front of you?

A: Actually I walked up with a Georgia Tech hat on and a white suit. I took my suit jacket off and I had on a West Virginia shirt and I put on a West Virginia hat.

Q: So you punked them?

A: Yeah. I've still got the newspaper article. There's a picture of (O'Brien) looking like this (head down with a look of disappointment and disbelief). It was pretty cool.

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