Five months before the start of the NFL’s 2026 free agency period, the New England Patriots were able to keep one of their top performers this season off the open market. Cornerback Marcus Jones was retained on a three-year contract extension through 2028 at a total value of $36 million.

The deal makes Jones one of the highest paid slot cornerbacks in the league, and allows the Patriots to keep some stability both in their secondary and their punt return game. It furthermore makes for a reasonable investment: even at its financial peak in 2028, the deal will barely make Jones one of the top-15 CBs in football in terms of salary cap hit (and that is before several other high-money contracts are given out across the league).

A look at the structure of Jones’ new pact, as reported and broke

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