Mac ultimately dictates offense’s fate
Doesn't matter who is calling the plays, Jones needs to execute
In Mac We Trust.
That should be the new slogan in Foxboro because the fate of the Patriots offense now firmly rests in Mac Jones’ hands.
In a quarterback- driven league, the burden is on Jones to take charge and make the offense fly, no matter who winds up calling the plays. Even with all the curveballs thrown his way since his rookie season ended, that’s how it has to be in New England.
And for the record, that’s not a bad development for the Patriots.
Forget that Jones lost Josh Mcdaniels, one of the best offensive coordinators and quarterback coaches in the game, and saw him replaced with a collection of former Patriot assistants — not to mention failed head coaches — who have little to no experience running an offense.
Forget that he’s also in the process of learning new terminology and adjusting to what Bill Belichick described as a streamlined version of the playbook.
Jones is still going to be able to make a Year 2 leap. How?
Simply by being himself.
He just might be good enough, smart enough and determined enough to where the playbook and his overseers won’t matter all that much. During the handful of OTA and minicamp sessions the media has been allowed to view, Jones has certainly looked the part of an up-and-coming star NFL quarterback.
Granted, he’s faced minimal competition during these practices, but whether Joe Judge, Matt Patricia or Belichick called the plays, Jones looked more like a polished veteran, as opposed to a confused kid trying to make heads or tails of what a couple of inexperienced offensive minds put in front of him.
While there are those who believe Jones may be hampered by his new coaching cartel, and what amounts to a dumbed-down offense, don’t dismiss him rising above the fray.
While he has a lot on his plate, as Devin Mccourty attested, Jones looks to be managing just fine.
Even with Judge, Patricia and Belichick in his ear calling plays, Jones was still the one who took charge in practice. He was the star running the show.
So basically, the offense is going to be what Jones makes of it.
“Has he taken control of the offense? That’s just a capital, YES. You know what I mean? Exclamation mark, exclamation mark,” receiver Jakobi Meyers said during a video conference Thursday. “What he sees, we all try to catch up to what’s in his mind, his vision.
“I know him and the coaches have been doing a great job of relaying information to us, but, ultimately, when we’re out there, he tells us … he’s adamant about what he says. He has a clear vision in his mind, like I said, and it’s real easy to work with him, because he puts us in the right direction. We just have to catch the balls he throws.”
So it’s more about Jones’ vision, and how he sees the offense developing, than anything else.
On several occasions, Jones actually went out and physically ran a route to show a receiver what he was looking for. The most recent example was Wednesday. After rookie Tyquan Thornton didn’t execute a route-running drill properly, Jones pulled Thornton aside to show him how to run the route.
In other words, even as a second-year quarterback, Jones is advanced well beyond his actual time in the league.
NBC Sports’ Chris Simms ranked all of the NFL’S starting quarterbacks and placed Jones at No. 18, which is in the middle of the pack. But he also said Jones was “maybe the best rookie decision-maker I’ve ever seen.”
That was also the skinny on Jones coming out of Alabama, after leading the Crimson Tide to a national championship.
Draft experts said he was smart, accurate and a quick processor.
We witnessed all of those traits last year, when he threw 22 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions while completing 67.6% of his passes as a rookie.
So when it comes time to execute a play call from Judge, Patricia, or whoever, if Jones doesn’t think the play aligns with the defense he sees in front of him, he’ll audible and call a play that has a better chance of working.
Again, it comes back to In Mac We Trust.
That seems to be Patriots approach. And with Belichick lording over the operation, and being more “hands-on” with the offense than in the past, don’t be surprised if Jones actually thrives in 2022, as opposed to taking a step back.
Jones agreed having Belichick more involved has been a plus.
“I feel like we’ve made a lot of growth together as an offensive unit with (Belichick), then obviously personally with him, and as a quarterback group,” Jones said via Zoom on Thursday. “We’re all on the same page. He’s seen the most amount of football of any of our coaches. He’s seen defense, offense and special teams.
“So having his input is always going to be very beneficial to me because he knows what puts stress on the defense.”
With the Patriots now off until the start of minicamp — Belichick canceled the final OTA sessions — Jones seemed to be in a good place with how things were developing.
He knows the work has just begun. While he’s improved his diet, gotten rid of his body fat and looked great throwing the football in the early camps, he knows he still has to improve and get stronger.
He also knows he’s in charge of the offense now, so it’s up to him to work the kinks out and provide input on how to move ahead.
It’s on him, and he’s determined to make it work.
“We’ve made strides but we know where we want to get to, that’s going to take a lot of work beyond just OTAS and we’re going to get there,” Jones said. “At this point, we’re just going to self-evaluate and push through, figure out the things we like, figure out the things we don’t like, then carry that over to training camp.”