New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones
The New England Patriots struggled throughout the 2022 regular season, and quarterback Mac Jones wore his emotions on his sleeve.
According to ESPN NFL analyst Louis Riddick, Jones’ behavior was unacceptable and wouldn’t have been received kindly by the brass in New England.
“What you saw happening last year with Mac Jones both on the field and on the sidelines — where he showed just how frustrated he was with the operation that he was having to work with in terms of the play-callers and the people that were in his ear — is totally unacceptable,” Riddick said, as transcribed by Boston.com’s Hayden Bird. “It’s unacceptable by (Robert) Kraft’s standards. It’s unacceptable by Bill Belichick’s standards. It’s unacceptable by Patriot Nation’s standards.
“Bill O’Brien now, he needs to settle things down for Mac Jones,” Riddick added. “They need to get Mac Jones a bonafide No. 1 wide receiver to really go ahead and take the top off the defense and let Mac really expand upon his skillset and see where he can take them.”
The Opinion of New England Patriots Quarterback Mac Jones is Diminishing
After struggling in 2022, analysts and experts don’t have high expectations for Jones. The Patriots quarterback threw for under 3,000 yards along with 14 touchdowns and 11 interceptions per Pro Football Reference.
Former Patriots quarterback Matt Cassel isn’t too high on Jones. Heading into 2023, Cassell has Jones ranked 25th in his “Way-Too-Early NFL Quarterback Rankings for 2023.”
“There were a lot of ups and downs for Mac Jones this past season,” Cassel wrote. “I’m still unsure of what type of quarterback he can be. But we will certainly find out with new offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien returning to the New England Patriots this season.”
The New England Patriots and Mac Jones Could be Without Their top Pass Catcher in 2023
While the Patriots know who will be under center in 2023, they don’t know if they will have one of their top pass catchers. Jakobi Meyers is a free agent and Bleacher Report believes his best fit would be with the Chicago Bears.
“It’s not easiest year to be in the market for wide receiver help in free agency, as this year’s class is relatively low on star power,” wrote Gary Davenport. “But that lack of options doesn’t preclude teams from needing help at the position or from having money to spend in the search for it. That could actually be a good thing for the players at the top of this year’s available options, and the best of the bunch may well be Jakobi Meyers.”
Davenport believes that with the cap space that Chicago has, they can pay the price to land Meyers.
“The Chicago Bears are sitting on a whopping $94.4 million in cap space and desperately need to get Justin Fields some passing-game weapons,” he wrote. “They own the No. 1 pick in the draft, but they don’t have another selection in the top 50, which likely puts them out of the running to add any of the top wideout prospects barring any trades. Are the Bears the absolute ideal landing spot for Meyers? Maybe not. But he’d be just about guaranteed to surpass 100 targets in the Windy City, and the giant pile of money he’d get should make him feel right at home.”