Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said Jones will start Sunday's game against the Lions in Detroit, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports. With Pederson ruling Trevor Lawrence out for a second straight game, Jones will get another opportunity to direct the offense after struggling to lead productive drives in his first extended action with the Jaguars in Week 10. Jones completed 14 of 22 passes for 111 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions in last Sunday's 12-7 loss to the Vikings, committing three turnovers in total after also losing a fumble. The matchup with a Lions defense that hasn't been as productive against the pass (6.5 yards per attempt allowed) or in generating pressure (24 sacks in nine games) as Minnesota is a slightly more favorable one for Jones, but he still profiles as a low-end fantasy option, given his lack of rushing ability and the relatively muted passing production he's shown over his 43 career starts between New England and Jacksonville. Per Demetrius Harvey of The Florida Times-Union, Pederson said Tuesday that he has optimism Lawrence will be able to return following the Jaguars' Week 12 bye, so Jones' run as a starter could come to an end after Sunday.
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Status
ACTIVELatest Mac Jones news
Career History
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DraftKings points 9.3FanDuel Points 9.3ATT 25.9CMP 16.6PASS YDS 166.6TD 0.3LNG 25.8CMP% 64.0SACK 2.7SYL 17.3INT 0.6RUSH YDS 8.0CBSS fantasy points 9.1ESPN fantasy points 8.5Yahoo fantasy points 9.2
Pregame Probabilities
Expected to pass >300 YDS6% -
Full season projectionsATT 431.8CMP 280.0PASS YDS 2,980.9TD 16.8LNG 44.0CMP% 64.9SACK 28.0SYL 201.8INT 8.2
Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said Jones will start Sunday's game against the Lions in Detroit, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports. With Pederson ruling Trevor Lawrence out for a second straight game, Jones will get another opportunity to direct the offense after struggling to lead productive drives in his first extended action with the Jaguars in Week 10. Jones completed 14 of 22 passes for 111 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions in last Sunday's 12-7 loss to the Vikings, committing three turnovers in total after also losing a fumble. The matchup with a Lions defense that hasn't been as productive against the pass (6.5 yards per attempt allowed) or in generating pressure (24 sacks in nine games) as Minnesota is a slightly more favorable one for Jones, but he still profiles as a low-end fantasy option, given his lack of rushing ability and the relatively muted passing production he's shown over his 43 career starts between New England and Jacksonville. Per Demetrius Harvey of The Florida Times-Union, Pederson said Tuesday that he has optimism Lawrence will be able to return following the Jaguars' Week 12 bye, so Jones' run as a starter could come to an end after Sunday.
Jones completed 14 of 22 passes for 111 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions in Sunday's 12-7 loss to the Vikings. He added five rushes for eight yards and a touchdown. Jones drew his first start with the Jaguars due to Trevor Lawrence (shoulder) being sidelined. He got off to a strong start, as Jones went 4-for-4 for 48 yards while sneaking into the end zone for a touchdown on Jacksonville's opening possession. However, things went downhill thereafter, and the QB threw an interception that concluded the team's final chance to win the game late in the fourth quarter. Lawrence practiced in a limited capacity throughout the week, meaning he could return for a Week 11 matchup against the Lions, which would return Jones to the bench.
Jones will start Sunday's game against the Vikings due to Trevor Lawrence (shoulder) being listed as questionable but slated to be inactive for the contest, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports. Even though Lawrence was listed as a limited practice participant Wednesday through Friday, Pelissero notes that Jones took all the first-team reps and will be in line for his first extended action of the season with Jacksonville, as his prior two appearances had come at the tail end of blowout losses. Jones -- who previously started 42 games with the Patriots over the past three seasons -- could be headed for additional starts beyond Sunday, with Ian Rapoport of NFL Network noting that Lawrence is dealing with a significant AC joint sprain to his non-throwing shoulder that likely puts him in the week-to-week rather than the day-to-day category. While surgery is considered a possibility for Lawrence, the Jaguars' plan for the time being is to have him treat the injury through rest and rehab. The Jaguars play the Lions in Week 11 before going on bye Week 12, so it may make sense for the team to have Jones start in place of Lawrence for the next two games before reassessing its quarterback situation following the bye week.
Jones was the first quarterback to go through drills during Thursday's practice and appears to be in line to start Sunday against the Vikings, Mia O'Brien of 1010 XL 92.5 FM Jacksonville reports. Head coach Doug Pederson didn't address the Jaguars' quarterback situation Thursday, but Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported earlier Thursday that Lawrence is unlikely to play Week 10 while he continues to receive treatment and weighs options for addressing discomfort in his non-throwing shoulder. Lawrence was listed as a limited participant in practice Thursday for the second day in a row, and official word on his status for Sunday may not arrive until after the Jaguars' final practice of the week Friday. That being said, the fact that Jones was first in line for drills supports the notion that Lawrence won't be available Sunday, as does the Jaguars' signing of C.J. Beathard off the Dolphins' practice squad Wednesday to fortify the quarterback room. Jones has served as Lawrence's backup through the Jaguars' first nine games of 2024 and has made just two brief cameos at the tail end of blowout losses in Weeks 3 and 6, but the 26-year-old boasts 42 games of NFL starting experience from his time in New England over the first three seasons of his career.
The Jaguars kept Jones over C.J. Beathard (groin) as the No. 2 QB on their initial 53-man roster, Justin Barney of News4Jax reports. Jones completed 38 of 52 passes (73.1 percent) for 421 yards (8.1 YPA) and three touchdowns in three preseason games, while Beathard attempted just 21 passes before a groin injury knocked him out of action. Beathard was then released Tuesday with an injury settlement, leaving Jones as the backup to Trevor Lawrence heading into Week 1.
Jones completed 16 of 23 passes for 210 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions and added six rushes for 14 yards in the Jaguars' 20-7 preseason win over the Buccaneers. Jones started and played the entire first half and returned for the fourth quarter, an unusual pattern that afforded him plenty of opportunity. The 2021 first-round pick of the Patriots, who's looking for a career reset in Jacksonville as Trevor Lawrence's backup, was impressive throughout, and he connected with Parker Washington (25 yards) and Brevin Easton (31 yards) for his pair of touchdown tosses. The two scoring drives spanned 17 and eight plays, confidence-building marches that Jones was able to navigate without turnovers. Jones is likely to see a solid amount of playing time once again in the preseason finale against the Falcons in Atlanta on Friday night.
Jones will start Saturday's preseason game against Tampa Bay. Coach Doug Pederson made the announcement Saturday evening, after previously suggesting Jones and C.J. Beathard would each play a half. It seems Jones will get the first half and Beathard the second, while starter Trevor Lawrence may be done for the preseason after playing one drive in Jacksonville's exhibition opener.
Jones will suit up for Saturday's preseason game against the Chiefs after Trevor Lawrence and C.J. Beathard have taken the field, John Shipley of SI.com reports. Jones, who had his fifth-year option declined after being dealt to Jacksonville by New England earlier this offseason, appears to currently be behind Beathard in the Jaguars' backup quarterback competition. There's plenty of time for that standing to shift ahead of Week 1 -- especially if the 2021 first-round pick can impress during his preseason appearances -- but for now, Jones' fantasy value is minimal outside of deeper two-QB formats.
The Jaguars didn't pick up Jones' fifth-year contract option, AL.com reports. While Jacksonville picked up the fifth-year options of starting quarterback Trevor Lawrence and top running back Travis Etienne, the team elected not to do so with Jones, who the Patriots took 15th overall in the 2021 NFL Draft. The decision wasn't surprising, given that the value of the Alabama product's option was $25.6 million, the same figure that applied to Lawrence. With the Jaguars, Michael DiRocco of ESPN notes that Jones -- who was obtained from New England in exchange for a sixth-round draft pick -- is slated to compete with C.J. Beathard to be the team's top backup signal-caller in 2024, and potentially beyond. During his three-year stint with the Patriots, Jones drew 42 starts, but the 25-year-old's 2023 campaign wound up with him being benched after Week 12 in favor of Bailey Zappe.