Getty New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones
After it was reported that the New England Patriots had shopped Mac Jones, Shannon Sharpe believes that the quarterback should demand a trade.
On FS1’s “Undisputed,” Sharpe discussed why the rumors should upset Jones.
“Yup,” Sharpe responded when asked about Jones requesting a trade. “If I’m Mac Jones, it rubbed me the wrong way that you’ve got somebody who’s never called offensive plays in their life, and now all of a sudden, he’s my coach. Put him on the side of the ball that he’s been most effective at — which is the defensive side of the ball.
Shannon Sharpe Believes Patriots Coaches Didn’t Listen to Mac Jones
Along with having to deal with Matt Patricia, who Sharpe alluded to, the analyst believes that Jones’ complaints weren’t taken into consideration last season while the Patriots’ offense struggled.
“Coaches like to tell you, ‘I’ve got an open door policy,’” Sharpe added. “Mac Jones is probably voicing his concerns. Not only to Matt Patricia. Not only to Joe Judge. And I’m sure they went back to Coach Belichick like little disciples, like they should. And guess what. It’s falling on deaf ears. So, you know what, let me go to somebody (if I’m Jones) and (ask), ‘How should I handle this? What should I do? Should I say something? Should I speak out? Should I go public to the media? How do I handle it? Do I just bite my tongue until blood starts to pour down my (face)? What do I do?’
“I’m trying to talk to Matt Patricia, but he’s just like Belichick. Joe Judge, he’s just like Belichick. Coach Belichick don’t want to hear anything I’ve got to say because he’s all annoyed — ‘How can you question anything that I do? See all my rings?’ He’s the type of guy (to say), ‘You see all these rings I’ve got?’”
With the rapid downturn of Jones’ career in New England, he should move on to somewhere else where he won’t be belittled according to Sharpe.
“If I’m Mac Jones, stay there for what? To be belittled, I’m not winning and you’re not putting me in a situation where I can succeed,” Sharpe concluded. “Yeah, get me up out of here.”
Mac Jones ‘Lost Support’ in 2022, Says Insider
According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, the Patriots quarterback lost support during his tumultuous 2022 season.
“Regardless of how you’d split that blame up, Jones lost support in the building with the way he managed the challenges of the season,” Breer wrote.
This offseason, Jones is putting in the work to regain trust among those in Foxborough. According to Breer, Jones has been working hard at the Patriots facilities.
“Jones has been at the facility to lift, throw and relationship-build with his new offensive coaches (Zappe has been, too), as those coaches basically rebuild the playbook,” Breer added.
Breer’s report comes on the heels of Dan Patrick reporting that Patriots players were split on whou should be New England’s starting quarterback.
“If you’re going to do that to Mac Jones, does it signal, ‘Alright, then we’re in the Lamar Jackson sweepstakes.’ Or are you going to go Bailey Zappe? And I do think that locker room is split,” Patrick said. “Somebody who used to play for the Patriots, and I asked, ‘Could you find out sorta how that feels in the locker room?’ And when he came back to me, probably four days later, he said, ‘There’s a lot of support for Bailey Zappe.’”
Jones threw for less than 3,000 yards in 2022 and only tallied 14 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, per Pro Football Reference.