There are unwritten rules in sports. Some of them seem stupid to fans. Some of them are stupid. Baseball has the monopoly on those. But football has some of its own. Former Seattle Seahawks – and current New England Patriots – edge rusher Dre’Mont Jones just violated not one, but two of football’s unwritten rules. And not the stupid kind.
In an Instagram post after his Patriots lost a heartbreaker to the Seahawks, the edge rusher touted a personal achievement in a loss. You don’t do that. That’s unwritten rule number 1. It signals a selfish player.
He also boasted about a play in which he caused an opponent to be injured. That’s an even bigger breach of NFL etiquette. That labels a player as classless.
Former Seattle Seahawks edge rusher Dre'Mont Jones attempts to get revenge with a futile gesture
I want to be clear that this latter part may have been nowhere near Jones’ intention. It probably wasn’t. Elite athletes understand the fragile nature of what they do, and they are rarely seen celebrating if they are aware that a player has been injured.
Still, this is a terrible, terrible look for Dre’Mont Jones.
On Friday afternoon, less than 24 hours after his new team had lost their season opener to the defending Super Bowl champions, Jones posted a still photo of his sack of Sam Darnold. It was the first drive of the game, and Darnold injured his hip on the play. He had to leave the game, and though the injury does not appear to be serious, he seems likely to miss a few games.
Jones included a caption which read “First NFL sack of the season. Gotta win the close ones but we will next time.” He tagged the post with “#gopats.”
And he included a second hidden message which appears when you tap on the photo.
“f**k_the_seahawks”
Seahawks fans did not take kindly to the trash-talking or the vulgarity. His team lost the game. His message may have talked about their need to win and a promise to do better in the future. That’s all well and good. But it’s hard not to see that the first words on the screen tout his personal accomplishment and not the team.
As for the hidden message, the 12 were also quick to point out that Seattle signed this player to a 3-year, $51 million contract in 2023. He lasted through two seasons in which he produced 8.5 sacks. He was released before the final year of the deal.
Jones was not a total washout with Seattle, but he was a disappointment. Outsiders are never going to learn the full story of what goes on in NFL locker rooms. Dre’Mont Jones may have legitimate reasons to be angry with how he was treated in Seattle. That’s not really the point.
The point is this … New England is Jones’ fifth team in eight NFL seasons. That’s journeyman status. He has at times been a good player. Overall, he has been exceptionally average. Teams seem to want him. But they don’t seem to want to keep him.
And the point is this … The world just finished watching HBO’s Hard Knocks, in which Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald impressed everyone with his calm, caring, team-centric manner. Macdonald is not a fiery hothead. He expresses genuine concern for his players and coaches, and there is a palpable mutual respect.
Dre’Mont Jones may have been released because he was not a good fit for the defense his new coach wanted to run, but after seeing this post, it seems equally likely that he is no longer in Seattle for other reasons.
He certainly showed little respect for the game and for other players with his vulgar bragging after a loss.
Jones went to Tennessee after being released by Seattle. Midway through the season, the Titans traded him to Baltimore. Despite the trade, he played pretty well in 2025 … good enough to get a decent multi-year deal from the Patriots. And he played well on Wednesday. In case you missed it, he got his first sack of the season.
Seattle, without him, won the Super Bowl.
Here’s an unwritten rule throughout sports that is decidedly not stupid. When a team kicks your butt, you shut up about it. Do your talking on the field, not on Instagram.
Unless they meet in the Super Bowl, the Seahawks are not scheduled to play the Patriots again until the 2028 season. That would be Jones's final year in New England should he play out the entire deal … something he has failed to do in two of his last three contracts.
If he is still with the Pats at that point, I suspect Macdonald will remind his team of this post. That’s an unwritten reality. The NFL has a long memory.
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