Brett Jones remembers the conversation vividly.
The center for the Calgary Stampeders was about to leave for a real-live NFL tryout with the Giants, and his offensive line coach, Pat DelMonaco, was talking with the head coach and general manager, John Hufnagel.
They wished Jones good luck.
“We both said the same thing without even talking to each other: “We’re never gonna see him again,’ ’’ DelMonaco told The Post.
Well, DelMonaco saw Jones recently, but not back in Canadian province of Alberta. DelMonaco, a Giants fan from Sleepy Hollow, watched intently on TV last Sunday as Justin Pugh went down in the second quarter with a sprained knee and Jones moved in as the starting left guard. Jones held up fine in his first extended NFL playing time, the Giants won 28-23 and, with Pugh sidelined for about a month, Jones is about to receive his first front-line action. And his first NFL start will be a doozy: a “Monday Night Football” test against the Bengals and a tough customer in Geno Atkins.
“He’s going to be very prepared, that’s who he is, that’s how he goes about his business,’’ coach Ben McAdoo said of Jones. “He’s a student of the game and puts a lot of time and effort into the preparation part of things and that showed up on Sunday.’’
That evaluation is an exact replica of how DelMonaco remembers Jones from their season together in 2014.
“The best way to sum it up is he does the homework building to the game so he plays reactionary football, he doesn’t think through every play, he reacts to what he’s seen,’’ DelMonaco said. “That’s why I think he’s different from some guys who have come down there from the CFL and he has a chance to hopefully make it a little bit longer than some guys have.’’
Jones took the road less traveled to the NFL. He grew up in Weyburn, Saskatchewan, playing hockey and football. He started getting serious about football during the latter stages of his four years at the University of Regina, where two of his teammates, defensive linemen Akiem Hicks (Saints) and Stefan Charles (Lions) made it to the big-time.
“I thought, ‘Hey maybe I could get a chance,’ ” Jones said. “I had to prove I could play in the CFL at the pro level first. That was my road to do it.”
In two seasons with the Stampeders, Jones was named the CFL’s Most Outstanding Rookie in 2013 and the league’s Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman in 2014, helping Calgary win the Grey Cup title.
The Giants last year took a flier on Jones. He was not ready to make the leap and probably was not going to make the roster when a knee injury in the summer landed him on injured reserve. Jones came back to give it another go, and this time he made the team, listed as the backup to center Weston Richburg.
Jones was forced into his first real action on offense after Richburg was ejected against the Redskins. Jones played the final 15 snaps at center. No one quite knew what would happen when Pugh went down against the Eagles and Jones trotted onto the field.
In his 50 plays, Jones was better than the Giants could have expected. Pro Football Focus gave him the highest grade of any of the Giants’ offensive lineman, and he was the only one of the five who did not give up a quarterback pressure.
“There’s always a lot to work on, that’s sort of always the way I’ve been,’’ Jones said. “Just keep moving forward, get better at getting better.’’
There are no CFL games on Sundays or Mondays — “Those are the NFL days,” Jones said — and watching from afar allowed him to wonder, what if.
“You dream about playing here,” Jones said. “When you get a chance, it’s very cool.”
No one expects Jones to measure up to Pugh, who was performing at a Pro Bowl level. Actually, Jones does not measure up very often. He knows at 6-foot-2 he is short. Not by regular-person standards, but by NFL offensive lineman standards.
“I’ve always been the shortest guy, even in the CFL I was the shortest guy,’’ Jones said.
Jones makes up for the lack of height by using his understanding of angles and also his limitations.
“Any offensive lineman, it’s all about leverage, so I think being shorter you sort of have an advantage there,’’ Jones said. “Sure, you’re gonna give up length or whatever but, I don’t know.’’
Still, the 24-year old Jones does not exactly look the part, roundish and baby-faced despite some scraggly facial hair.
“When you look at him you still think he’s about 12 years old,’’ DelMonaco said.
Jones says he gets kidded in the locker room about being a Canadian, but that is not unexpected.
“Same sort of thing in Canada, the Canadian guys will joke with the American guys,’’ he said. “They accept you as a player and it’s been a lot of fun so far.’’
It is not yet as fun as it was in Calgary, where Jones was something of a cutup. DelMonaco called him “a prankster and a great comedian.’’ Jones would get up in front of the Stampeders and do a five-minute routine the night before every home game. Before the 2014 Grey Cup game, Jones did a three-minute bit on Hufnagel — a former Giants offensive coordinator — that brought house down.
“Had the whole room absolutely falling out of their chairs,’’ DelMonaco said. “He is quite the comedian and he’s good at it. A funny, funny guy.’’
The Stampeders went 15-2-1 this season and are awaiting their opponent in the Western final, moving on from Jones.
“Extremely physical football player, very strong, just plays with a great attitude and really, really physical kid,’’ DelMonaco said. “We miss him immensely.’’
The way it is shaping up, it looks as if Jones is not coming back.
The Giants are holding out hope Victor Cruz (ankle) can play Monday night against the Bengals. Though Cruz has not practiced this week, he is listed as questionable and will have Sunday’s practice to test his sprained ankle and convince the Giants he can play. LB Jonathan Casillas (calf) was added to the injury list as questionable, as are S Andrew Adams (shoulder) and DE Kerry Wynn (concussion).
