SAN DIEGO – If you learned one thing from Saturday’s loss to San Diego, it’s that Chris Jones can serve as the Cowboys’ emergency running back.

The Cowboys new punter picked up a first down on a 10-yard run after dropping a snap, which did not go as planned.

“Unfortunately just a mistake on my part,” Jones said. “I was lucky it all panned out and I was able to recover the ball and pick up a first down. It just kind of fell that way.”

Jones was attempting a flip-flop punt from the San Diego 40 in the second quarter when he dropped what was a perfect snap.

Jones’ predecessor, Mat McBriar, used the end-over-end punt to near perfection over the years as a way to pin the opponent deep. Jones began working on it when he joined the Cowboys’ practice squad last year and officially added it to his repertoire in the offseason. He used it with success against Oakland in the first preseason game.

“I wouldn’t say it’s hard to learn, but it’s just hard to handle in a sense because it’s more of a touch punt,” Jones said. “You can go out here and crank a regular ball 60 yards or whatever, but with that ball you have a limited distance so you have to know where the line of scrimmage is and what kind of kick you need. I’m feeling more comfortable with it overall. It’s still something I work on with the ball striking and the locations to get a feel for whether the ball has to go 40 yards or 48 yards.”