Maurice Jones-Drew says fantasy matchup almost impacted real NFL game

Jacksonville Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew (in an October 2012 game against Oakland) doesn’t mess around when it comes to fantasy football.
(Photo: Cary Edmondson, USA TODAY Sports)

Hopefully Maurice Jones-Drew’s fantasy team had a better record than his 2-14 Jacksonville Jaguars did last season.

On Wednesday, the running back, who often drafts himself in fantasy football, shared a story on the “Evan and Phillips in the Morning” on XM Satellite Radio about just how seriously he and some of his real-life teammates take their off-the-field matchups.

Via Larry Brown Sports:

“Greg Jones — see he’s not on the team anymore — perfect example: I was playing against him [in fantasy]. And we have our equipment guys keep us up on [the fantasy scores] during games. You know who you have and you see when you’re not on the field obviously but … I think if I scored, I was going to [beat Jones].

“We got onto the 1-yard line, and they were like, ‘We better call this run play.’ I’m like, ‘Greg, don’t do it.’ And he looked at me and he winked. And I was like ‘Greg.’ It’s not time to play. This is bigger than [winning in fantasy]. Let’s not do this.”

Asked what the wink meant, MJD answered, “[Jones] wasn’t going to block the guy!”

It doesn’t seem like Jones is actually accusing his fullback, who joined the Houston Texans in March after nine seasons with Jaguars, of going through with the sabotage. It seems more just an illustration of how even actual NFL players are paying as much attention to their fantasy stats as guys at home watching Sunday Ticket.

Neither Jones-Drew or Jones have commented on Twitter since the interview, but the Jaguars’ official account seemed to indicate that their franchise back was just being his usual playful self.