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New England Patriots defensive end Chandler Jones might need surgery on his ankle, according to Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald.
Jones said he will consult the Patriots' medical staff "to determine whether he needs surgery." However, it's unknown which ankle is giving Jones more problems. He hurt his right ankle in Week 11 against the Indianapolis Colts, which forced him to miss two games. But then he rolled his left ankle against the Houston Texans in the Divisional Round of the playoffs and only played sparingly against the Baltimore Ravens.
Jones said the injuries slowed him, but not as much as some people might think:
"Taking a dip, I feel like as a pass-rusher, you can't really get a sack every game," Jones said. "There's a mixture of teams game-planning. I'm not trying to make excuses, but I was injured. But you can't get a sack every game.
"I wouldn't say (the ankle) limited me. I did get banged up a little bit. Every week, I was just trying to give the team the best that I had."
Jones, a first-round pick out of Syracuse in the 2012 NFL Draft, had better success this season before his injuries. He recorded all six of his sacks in the first eight games, including a two-sack performance against Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks.
His tackle numbers were down after the first eight games, too. He had 24 total tackles in 2012, but just six came in the second half of the season.
The Patriots are hoping Jones' sophomore season is where he really sees improvement. With Jones (hopefully) healthy and the rest of the young defense improving (the Patriots also had rookie starters at linebacker in Dont'a Hightower and No. 2 cornerback Alfonzo Dennard this season), the Pats could see an even better unit in 2013.