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Rookie Jartavius Martin’s interception wasn’t Mac Jones fault, even though it meant the New England Patriots were beaten by the Washington Commanders 20-17 in Week 9. Pats’ head coach Bill Belichick defended Jones’ decision-making, while wide receiver Juju Smith-Schuster took the blame for his quarterback’s pass bouncing off his hands at Gillette Stadium.
An angle of the play highlighted by Henry McKenna of Fox Sports appears to put the onus on Smith-Schuster: “You can argue that the QB shouldn’t have thrown it. But it hit his WR in the hands. That should’ve been a catch.”
Jones’ decision to throw over the middle on 2nd-and-8 from the Washington 41-yard line with 35 seconds left has split reactions. Some agree with McKenna and believe Smith-Schuster had to make the catch. Other think Jones should never has risked throwing into traffic.
Smith-Schuster attempted to settle the debate by saying, “It’s all on me,” per MassLive.com’s Mark Daniels.
For his part, Belichick didn’t think Jones’ read was the problem, per Alex Barth of 98.5 The Sports Hub.
Whichever view you take, the fact remains Jones couldn’t make a play in the clutch. His late pick was just one of several near misses, admittedly not all on the QB, that stymied the Patriots.
Those lapses will only amplify the noise about whether Jones is any kind of answer for New England at football’s most important position.
Mac Jones Left Too Many Plays On the Field
The late interception wasn’t Jones’ only errant connection on the day. He also missed the chance for other big plays.
Notably when targeting running back Rhamondre Stevenson on a wheel route earlier in the fourth quarter. As former Patriots Super Bowl-winning special teamer Matt Chatham pointed out, “there is nothing more going on in this clip than a not-good-enough throw inexplicably thrown as a fadeaway jumper.”
The Patriots got what they wanted, Stevenson one-on-one with a linebacker in space. Offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien did his part with play design, the line held up in protection, but Jones failed with velocity and ball placement.
Jones had other misses during a rough day. He also couldn’t link up with wideout Tyquan Thornton on fourth down on the Pats’ opening drive.
The beleaguered signal-caller admitted “I just missed him,” per Daniels.
Jones knows he left a ton of plays on the field, but there were other moments when No. 10 hardly got enough help from his receivers.
JuJu Smith-Schuster, Patriots’ Receivers Didn’t Do Enough
Smith-Schuster wasn’t the only member of Jones’ supporting cast who failed to make a play. New England’s QB1 was also let down by Thornton and Jalen Reagor.
The latter let a well-thrown deep ball drop through his hands when a touchdown appeared inevitable on a play highlighted by QB List writer Ben Brown.
Reagor’s lack of concentration and basic mechanics took points off the board. They also denied Jones what would have been a necessary confidence booster.
The quarterback is struggling, so his receivers need to step up and do the basics right to help Jones as much as possible. Unfortunately, Thornton didn’t follow Belichick’s blueprint when he stayed on the move at the top of a route up the sideline.
As NBCS Boston’s Phil Perry detailed, Belichick cautioned “all receivers at camp last summer (Thornton’s rookie year) about taking unnecessary steps at the tops of routes. Did the whole foot-fire thing himself and everything. Still an issue for Thornton on that snap.”
This many elementary errors from a quarterback and his receivers sums up why the Patriots are 2-7. Their offense, specifically the passing game, simply isn’t equipped to produce splash plays when it counts.
Changes are inevitable in the offseason, but the scale of change is unknown. Belichick has to take responsibility for not equipping Jones with a dynamic go-to receiver, but Jones can’t hide from missing too many throws a competent NFL starter should make.
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