It’s been a disappointing second season both on and off the field for New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones.
Before suffering the high ankle sprain that sidelined him for the last three weeks, Jones struggled to adjust to the Patriots’ “streamlined” offense. With Matt Patricia and Joe Judge filling in for Josh McDaniels as the de facto offensive coordinators, Jones threw five interceptions in three games.
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Obviously, these offensive changes, combined with Jones’ injury, have caused some tension behind the scenes in New England. The MMQB’s Albert Breer says the relationship between Jones and the team has soured at times recently.
“I think things have really gone a little sideways the last couple of months,” Breere said Sunday on Patriots Pregame Live. “I think it goes back to the change from Josh McDaniels. “Why are we bringing in Joe Judge and Matt Patricia when Bill O’Brien is sitting there and we could potentially go after him? Why does it make sense to have a defensive end and a special teams guy here? Why are we changing the attack? Why are we rationalizing after all the success I’ve had?’ …
“I think it’s become an injury now and I think it’s given the coaches an opportunity to send a message to Mac. I don’t think Mac was ever in danger of losing his job, but I don’t think they told Mac that either. I don’t think they said to Mac, “Listen, you’re good, don’t worry about how Bailey Zappe plays.”
Zappe hasn’t lit up the box score since replacing Jones, but the rookie stepped up to the plate to give his side a chance to win. He went into overtime in his first NFL start against the Green Bay Packers, then helped the Patriots to a 29-0 victory over the Detroit Lions in his first career start. His only loss in the two games was an interception that bounced off the hands of wide receiver Nelson Aholor.
Jones is expected to resume his role as the starting QB when healthy, but head coach Bill Belichick didn’t commit to that during his recent press conference.
“We’ll see where it’s at,” Belichick said. “I do not know.”
Breere believes Belichick and the Patriots are using this as an opportunity to send a message to their 2021 first-rounder.
“This is a chance for them to send the message to Mac that you need to do things better,” Breer added. “Like, if you believe the offense, look at what the offense does for this fourth-round pick out of Western Kentucky. We saw at the beginning of the year that he released some in free agency, he shot down, we saw the turnover problem. I think part of the message here is, look at what Bailey Zappe is doing. He does what we tell him and watch the offense work for him.
Zappe again took over for Jones in Sunday’s Week 6 game against the Cleveland Browns. The Patriots QB situation will be worth watching leading up to the team’s Monday Night Football game against the Chicago Bears.
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