New England Patriots’ quarterback Mac Jones made it loud and clear to reporters on Wednesday: Things are just fine between him and Bill Belichick.
Ahead of the draft, it was reported that Belichick had been shopping the third-year quarterback. Jones had a frustrating second season with the Patriots, making headlines with several angry outbursts on the sidelines during games.
But while speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Jones stated that his relationship with the legendary head coach is “good”, per Belle Fraser of the New York Post:
“I think the biggest thing that we’ve all talked about is just having a fresh start. I think there’s a lot of learning experiences from last year that we’ve talked about and this year, it’s all about just working together, right? You’ve got to come up with a plan, obviously talk about it, and then execute it. So, I’m excited for that part of it.”
The Patriots lost longtime offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who left for the Las Vegas Raiders’ head coaching vacancy last year. In a confusing move, Belichick opted to make Matt Patricia and Joe Judge the co-offensive play-callers even though their backgrounds were on defense and special teams, respectively.
New England’s offense went from sixth in scoring (27.2 points per game) in Jones’ rookie year to 17th (21.4 points per game). Backup Bailey Zappe (a rookie and fourth-round draft choice) actually looked better than Jones in his four game appearances.
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Zappe won both his starts and completed 70.7 percent of pass attempts for 781 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions.
Belichick brought back old friend Bill O’Brien to serve as the offensive coordinator for 2023, leaving Jones and company with no excuses to disappoint again in 2023. The Patriots will open their season with a home tilt against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sept. 10.
