Soon-to-be third-year quarterback Mac Jones has been criticized by a former coach, who claimed the New England Patriots player was arrogant in his approach to the game last season.
The QB is coming off a less-than-impressive campaign in which he really upset Bill Belichick by going behind his back to seek help over the team’s offensive woes. But Jones has said he will do whatever he can to regain the respect of everyone within the organization, suggesting as much to reporters last week.
Eric Mangini, a former defensive coordinator who worked with the Patriots in the early 2000s, appreciated Jones’ comments but was also critical of the way the signal-caller handled himself during the term.
“I like what he said. I like it a lot because I’ve always felt that Mac didn’t appreciate how good a situation he came into,” he told the 33rd Team’s Trey Wingo. “He had Josh McDaniels, he had Mick Lombardi, a great offensive staff. He had as stable an organization as you could get.
“He had a team that played complementary football. He came from a program that was similar. It was a perfect situation for who he was. And then Josh McDaniels leaves, he talks about, ‘Oh, I’ve had multiple coordinators. It’s not that big a deal.'”
Mangini thought it was arrogant of Jones to seek help from outside of the organization.
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“There was a little arrogance to the way he approached things,” he added. “And then he found out how hard it is to win consistently in this league, and how tenuous your position is and that you probably shouldn’t go outside the New England Patriots organization if you don’t like what’s going on.”
Jones joined the Patriots as a first-round pick in 2021. He had a solid debut season but regressed in 2022, though he had a QB rating of 84.8. The Patriots failed to make the playoffs while Jones often cut a frustrated figure, constantly clashing with coaches on the sidelines.
Mangini reckons he has a long road ahead as it pertains to getting back into the team’s good graces, although he is off to a good start.
