JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — It's been a long road back to the backfield for Patrick Jones II.

So when he got there, it was worth savoring.

The Panthers' veteran outside linebacker had a sack in his first preseason game, and his first game action since back surgery ended last season and clouded his future.

So as Jaguars quarterback Nick Mullens was on the ground following third down, and the Jaguars turned a goal-to-go situation into a field goal attempt, Jones let out a howl.

"It was just like a relief, you feel me," Jones said quietly in the EverBank Stadium locker room after a 34-17 win over the Jaguars. "It was a long journey, but we're back, man. We're back.

"We're back."

Those last two words are poignant, because he admitted earlier in camp it was an emotional journey, after finding out four games into his first season with the Panthers that he had a herniated disc and needed surgery that would end his season. And then to spend all that time coming back, and then to lose teammate Nic Scourton to a torn ACL in the first practice of training camp brought it all out of him.

So it might have been a simple sack in the first quarter of a preseason game (he missed last weeks with an illness), but for Jones and the people around him, it meant a lot more.

"Man, it, it was amazing," said fellow outside linebacker Princely Umanmielen. "We were just talking about it the other day how this is his first time facing anybody else since he got hurt, and we were talking about how he's got to let his anger out."

Everyone felt it.

"Great for Pat Jones to get back out there; he had a long offseason rehabbing, and for him to be back playing football under the lights to get a sack was such a cool moment," Panthers head coach Dave Canales noted. "You could see his excitement when he popped up and just a great step in the right direction as we continue to ramp Pat up for the season."

Canales also mentioned Jones' ability to rush from inside on passing downs, allowing them to use him, Jaelan Phillips, and Umanmielen on the field together.

"That's very important, man," defensive tackle Derrick Brown said. "Just to get to the point where we have that rotation, be able to have guys that can get back there constantly and frequently. That's what we want.

"Excited to have the group and get pressure on the quarterback and, man, now we got our edges back."

The Panthers had just 30.0 sacks last season, and only two teams in the league had fewer. But the hope was that adding a premium free agent in Phillips to the group would benefit everyone. That's been the case in practice and the preseason, with Umanmielen getting more involved this year. So while they'll miss Scourton (who tied with Brown for the team lead with 5.0 last year), the group is deeper.

Phillips didn't play Friday after getting his elbow checked following Wednesday's joint practice, but said he'd have "absolutely" played in a regular season game.

And with his own background overcoming adversity, he had a special appreciation for what he saw.

"I've known Pat for a long time, I know his story very well, and I'm just super, super happy for him, man," Phillips said. "As somebody who's been through injuries and stuff, like it's always great to see people persevere. I just have empathy and respect for guys who have gone through that situation because obviously I've been through similar situations too.

"With us just having a little deeper group there, the versatility, it allows us to have speed on the inside. It allows us to get multiple looks at different things. It's always good to have options."

But you shouldn't overlook the fact that one of the options is Jones, considering what he went through.

"I felt good in general just to be back out there," Jones said. "Not even about just getting a sack, but really just being able just to be blessed to know that God kept his hand over me to allow me to be back out there playing again.

"It was always a thought in my head. It was just a little bit of uncertainty, but I just had to lean on God. So I just kind of put it in God's hands, and in my head I was, I'm gonna try my best to do everything I can to get back.

"A lot of people counted me out, for sure, so I feel good."