Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images Jackson was unable to play on Sunday due to what his agent later called “mental health issues.” When the New England Patriots starting defense took the field against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, J.C. Jackson was suspiciously absent. Typically, the former Pro Bowl cornerback would have been part of the top group on that side of the ball. His place was taken by rookie in-season pickup Alex Austin, however, and Jackson did not make an appearance throughout the afternoon. Despite being part of the game day roster, he was neither spotted on the field nor the sideline. Speculation started to spread quickly, especially on social media and not always coming from serious sources. It took until after the Patriots’ eventual 27-17 loss for some information to emerge: according to Jackson’s agent he was unavailable due to “mental health issues.” The nature of those remain in the dark, but for Patriots captain Matthew Slater it does not matter what exactly is going on. For him, it’s all about supporting his teammate. “I’m not intimately familiar with the details of that situation. I don’t know everything going on,” he said on a media conference call on Monday. “But I think so often times with athletes, we’re put on this pedestal — like we’ve got everything together and our personal lives are great and we’re role models et cetera. But we’re human beings just like everybody else and we struggle with a number of different things, in our personal lives and professional lives. “They affect us all differently. I think any time guys are going through things, my hope is that I can support them in any way they feel comfortable. Whether it’s something as simple as prayer or having them over to the house. Jerald knows this. I love him. I’ve always been very fond of him since he first got here years ago. And I want nothing but the best for him.” Slater and Jackson go back to the 2018 season, when the defensive back was brought in by the Patriots as a rookie free agent. They spent the next four seasons together, winning a Super Bowl along the way and seeing Jackson develop into one of the league’s most productive cornerbacks. When he left New England in 2022 to sign a lucrative contract with the Los Angeles Chargers, however, his on-field performances started taking a turn for the worse. Jackson struggled with injury and failed to adapt to his new defensive scheme — an issue that says more about the Chargers’ decision-makers and coaching staff than it does about him. By early October, he was sent back to New England: the Patriots acquired him via trade in exchange for a late-round draft pick swap. Jackson quickly resumed a prominent role in the team’s secondary, but questions started to emerge behind the scenes. He played some up-and-down football, and was benched early on against the Washington Commanders. He was subsequently left in New England instead of making the trip to Germany for Week 10 — reportedly as part of a “mental reset.” The 28-year-old returned to the lineup after New England’s bye week, and rarely left the field over the next three games. The expectation was that the contest against Kansas City would be more of the same, but something changed within 90 minutes of kickoff. For Slater, the job now is to support Jackson, whom he refers to by his birth name Jerald rather than J.C. “I think if you ask anyone in our locker room that same question, they’ll tell you the same thing: we care about his well-being as a human being, first and foremost,” he said. “We want to see him be healthy, both physically and mentally. We want to see him be successful. And all that is with football aside. We put such a heavy emphasis on football and rightfully so — it’s our job. But it’s not the ultimate. It’s an important thing, but it’s not the ultimate thing. “For Jerald, I hope he hears and understands and knows, that for us, we just want to see him be well. That’s the most important thing.” Source: https://www.patspulpit.com/2023/12/19/2 ... jc-jackson
