Getty Patriots quarterback Mac Jones
Sink your teeth into this: Mac Jones, 2024 Patriots quarterback. It is a possibility, as the reality of the Patriots’ rebuilding needs comes into focus, that we could see exactly that next season even after what was a miserable 2023 that seemed to leave Jones entirely shattered.
While one of the options for the Patriots in the coming weeks—the most likely one, really—has been the signing of a so-called “bridge” quarterback in March and the drafting of a long-term solution with the No. 3 pick in April, there have been more and more suggestions that the Patriots already have a bridge quarterback on hand. That’s Jones.
That scenario was discussed this week between NFL Network’s Rich Eisen and NBC Sports Boston insider Tom Curran on “The Rich Eisen Show.” Eisen mentioned his thought that Jones simply “needed a hug,” none of which were available during the Bill Belichick regime, and could thrive again in a more player-friendly environment with Jerod Mayo in charge.
Curran, for his part, did not rule out a Jones return.
“I wouldn’t move on from Mac Jones until you absolutely know that’s an asset you can’t use, you don’t need him anymore,” Curran said. “But, to me, I wouldn’t make any decisions until you have to make the decision.”
Patriots Quarterback Mac Jones: ‘Mentally Broken’?
This is not quite the Patriots quarterback plan most fans had expected for 2024. But there is some logic. The Patriots have a skeleton of an offense at this point, with two starting tackles, the starting tight end, the top wide receiver and the top running back heading into free agency. There are so many holes to fill on the team that even if a quarterback is drafted at No. 3, the Patriots couldn’t possibly start him right away.
So let Jones take the flak. Why pay $7 million or so for Jacoby Brissett, when you can run Jones out there and use that money elsewhere? Jones was a Pro Bowl quarterback as a rookie, and while he struggled last season, he had his moments.
“It’s not that long ago that he actually had a game against the Buffalo Bills that he brought the team back to win, 29-25, so there’s a quarterback in there,” Curran said. “There’s a quarterback in there who can play.”
However, in the same conversation, Curran called Jones, “virtually unusable.”
“What if things go sideways this year? What if even if they’re going well, he is so mentally broken in New England that he is double-thinking and triple-thinking?” he wondered.
Fan Outrage Would Likely Run High
The three concerns about bringing Jones back and having him as the starter are the notion that, as Curran said, he is mentally broken, the idea that his on-field actions in the last two years alienated too many people, and the way fans would react.
Few fans would be pleased to see Jones back under center next year. Within the team, he would have to make apologies for his lack of leadership and open expressions of frustration during the past two seasons. The slate would truly have to be wiped clean. Finally, the staff would have to coddle him a bit. Give him a “hug,” as Eisen said.
“The leadership aspect was difficult for most people in the organization to swallow, despite the bad situation that most people agree he was put in, coach-wise, I think his acting out, really soured—not completely—but really soured the organization on whether or not they can see him as a leader all the time,” Curran said. “And I think it might be best if they move on from each other, from both sides.
“But, in a vacuum, if you look at it, you say, he’s a kid on the fourth year of his rookie contract, it’s manageable. We’ve seen him have good games in the NFL, why would we move on from him?”