Mac Jones catches up with former Alabama teammate John Metchie III after preseason opener

The Houston Texans faced off against the New England Patriots in their preseason opener on Thursday night on NFL Network. Following the game, two former Alabama teammates got to catch up for a quick minute–former Crimson Tide quarterback Mac Jones and his old receiver, John Metchie III. Metchie is now healthy heading into the 2023 campaign and will get to play football for the first time in a few years.

Check it out below as they shared a moment.

Great moment postgame when Mac Jones catches up with former Alabama teammate John Metchie III. Metchie battled leukemia and is back playing football💪🏈 pic.twitter.com/jnra3n7NVl

— The Camera Guys (@NBCSCameraGuys) August 11, 2023

The Houston Texans won Thursday night’s game by a score of 20-9. Former Louisville superstar Malik Cunningham capped off the scoring on the night with an electrifying nine-yard touchdown run.

While at Alabama, Jones and Metchie teamed up together to lead the Crimson Tide to the 2021 National Championship. As a junior in 2021, Metchie hauled in 96 catches for 1,142 receiving yards and eight touchdowns, before tearing his ACL in the 2021 SEC Championship Game. He was also named second team All-SEC in 2021.

For more on Metchie and him officially being cleared for the 2023 campaign, check out the article below from On3’s Nikki Chavanelle.

John Metchie III cleared and ready to go for the 2023 season

Houston Texans wide receiver John Metchie III was recently officially cleared to practice in training camp after missing his rookie season, according to team general manager Nick Caserio.

“John’s ready to go,” Caserio said. “He had a little bit of set back there in the spring but he’s clear, he’s ready to practice.”

Metchie missed the entire 2022 season after receiving a diagnosis of Leukemia after the draft. Though he was initially cleared for play on that front this offseason, a hamstring injury set him back leading up to training camp.

Metchie’s diagnosis, which came last July, revealed he had APL (Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia), which is a form of Leukemia with the highest rates of long-term survival. After finding out about his condition, the second-rounder spent a month and a half in in-patient treatment. He followed that up with several months of outpatient chemotherapy.

Although he was one of the most electric college players of the last few years, Metchie will still have to win a starting job now that he’s cleared to play.

Houston selected him No. 44 overall. They went for him despite him suffering a torn ACL very late in the season.

On3’s Nikki Chavanelle also contributed to this article.