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.
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Status
ACTIVELatest Mac Jones news
Team
Jacksonville Jaguars
Birthdate
9/5/1998 (26)
Status
Active
HT/WT
6'3", 220 lbs
Draft Info
2021: Rd 1; Pk (NE)
Birthplace
Jacksonville, FL, USA
Position
QB
College
Alabama
Experience
4 seasons
Career History
Jacksonville Jaguars
2024-Present
(1 season)
New England Patriots
2021-2024
(3 seasons)
-
ATT 13.1CMP 8.5PASS YDS 86.3TD 0.9LNG 27.0CMP% 65.0SACK 1.8SYL 8.1INT 0.5RUSH YDS 1.8CBSS fantasy points 8.7ESPN fantasy points 6.9Yahoo fantasy points 7.3
Pregame Probabilities
Passing Touchdowns 3+7% -
Full season projectionsATT 431.8CMP 280.0PASS YDS 2,980.9TD 16.8LNG 44.0CMP% 64.9SACK 28.0SYL 201.8INT 8.2
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.
The Jaguars will finalize a trade Sunday to acquire Jones from the Patriots in exchange for a 2024 sixth-round draft pick, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports. The deal won't become official until the new league year begins Wednesday, but assuming Jones is able to pass a physical, the Jacksonville native will join his hometown team heading into his fourth NFL season. Though he served as a 42-game starter over his three seasons in New England, Jones slid to third on the depth chart by the end of the 2023 campaign and finished his tenure with the Patriots with a 66.1 percent completion rate for 6.8 yards per attempt and a 46:36 TD:INT. He'll give the Jaguars an experienced backup option behind Trevor Lawrence, who has thus far proven durable in his young career with just one missed game over three seasons. Expect the Jaguars to decline Jones' pricey fifth-year option on his rookie contract this spring, which will make the 25-year-old signal-caller eligible for free agency following the 2024 season.
New England is open to trading Jones and has engaged with discussions in teams around the league, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. The Patriots have been consistently rumored to be open to revamping the quarterback room this offseason, and Mark Daniels of The Providence Journal reports that the team has no intention of picking up Jones' fifth-year option. Jones, a 2021 first-round pick, finished his third NFL season as a healthy scratch after being replaced by Bailey Zappe as New England's starter Week 13, ending the year with a mediocre 2,120 passing yards and 10:12 TD:INT. It's unclear whether Jones will have a significant trade market at this point, but there are enough questions marks at quarterback elsewhere in the league that some teams may be willing to take a chance on the young signal-caller, even if they may not be willing to part with substantial draft capital.
Leading up to the contest, the Patriots didn't publicly name a starting QB, but Jones ended up getting the nod and playing the entire first half. In the process, the 2021 first-rounder completed 12 of 21 passing attempts for 89 yards and two interceptions. With the signal-caller pivot Sunday, it remains to be seen who helms the team's offense in Week 13, but if Zappe looks sharp versus the Giants it could earn him another look against the Chargers next weekend.
Though Jones was sent in for X-rays after he didn't take the field for the Patriots' final possession of the Nov. 12 loss to the Colts in Germany, the injury was never viewed as the primary cause of his absence. Instead, the Patriots' decision to go with Bailey Zappe -- who ended up throwing game-sealing interception -- late in the fourth quarter seemed to be a result of Jones being benched for performance-related reasons. While the Patriots were on bye this past week, head coach Bill Belichick was non-committal on the team's plans at quarterback moving forward, and the team has yet to name a starter for Sunday's game against the Giants as Week 12 prep gets underway. Per Mike Reiss of ESPN.com, Jones appeared to be the first quarterback taking reps during Tuesday's unofficial practice session, though Zappe saw a significant share of the snaps behind him. Will Grier also lingers on the roster as a third option at quarterback, and at this stage, it's conceivable that any of the three could draw the Week 12 start as the 2-8 Patriots look to put an end to a three-game losing streak.