Maurice Jones-Drew, the Jacksonville Jaguars’ cannonball-shaped running back, is a player unlike any other in the NFL. He is a 5-foot-7-inch, 208-pound dervish. He sleeps in a hyperbaric chamber. He owns himself in the fantasy football league in which he plays with the team’s equipment managers.

The novelty of Jones-Drew distracts from the larger point: He has become one of the league’s elite running backs. This season, Jones-Drew is cementing that status while carrying the largest load of his career, playing for the first time in a backfield by himself after the Jaguars cut Fred Taylor, once his mentor and now a Patriot.

Jones-Drew will provide a unique challenge for his former teammate’s new team, and how well the Patriots tackle him will help decide Sunday’s game. His low center of gravity makes him difficult to knock off his feet, his quickness helps him squirm out of a tackler’s grasp, and his power pushes piles forward at the end of runs. Tackling a bull might be easier.

"There’s no doubt, he’s definitely one of the top backs we’ve seen,’’ Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. "And we’ve seen a lot of good ones. He can do it all. He’s returned kicks. He’s good in pass protection. He catches the ball very well. He has a good feel in the passing game. He can run inside, he can run outside, he can run with power, he can run with speed.’’