The Georgia Bulldogs played much of last season without starting safety Kyron Jones, who suffered a foot injury. Jones appeared in six games (Jones started all six games) last season before suffering the injury against Auburn. Jones was preparing to return for Georgia's College Football Playoff run, but suffered a setback that kept him out of spring practice.
Jones' will have to battle in camp to keep his starting spot in the Georgia secondary. He's not ready to return to a full workload yet, but has progressed well since the spring.
"We're he's been kind of on a pitch count, so we're starting him in fall camp in the same mode," Smart said. "He's been ramping up after of a resting period, and he's been increasing as the summer goes.
"It's not that
he's not 100% healthy, but he's not taking 100% of a normal practice day's reps. We're trying to build him up more conditioning-wise and see how he feels. It's a very sensitive injury, so it's tough to monitor. He's done a lot of rehab, so it's been frustrating for him because when the team does a lot of conditioning, he can't do it. "
Smart added that Jones has to do non-impact conditioning. It is understandable why Georgia is being cautious with Jones. The Bulldogs would love to have him play, but it is a long season and there's no need to rush Jones back.
"He has been a really good special teams player. He came in and started some games last year, and we wanted to give him a chance to compete for those spots and positions that our safeties play."
We currently have Jones behind Rasean Dinkins at safety on Georgia's defensive depth chart. However, Jones has more than enough talent to start. The question will be is he healthy enough and has he returned to form while holding off stout competition.
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This article originally appeared on UGA Wire: Injury update on starting Georgia football defensive back
