Getty New England Patriots QB Mac Jones.
It was not exactly a ringing endorsement bestowed upon third-year New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones by new coach Jerod Mayo during a Boston radio segment on January 22.
And one thing we can take away from the first few days of the Patriots’ Mayo regime is that the head coach will be a lot more open with the media than his predecessor. That’s not saying much, of course.
In an appearance on “The Greg Hill Show” on WEEI on Monday, Mayo was asked about Jones potentially struggling in a leadership role, and in his answer, Mayo revealed that he thinks Jones’ decline in 2023 was more about confidence than anything else.
“When I think about Mac (Jones), he obviously has talent. And, once again, we’re in the evaluation phase,” Mayo said. “I will say with that, the confidence of a player is very fragile, especially these players now—like I am an old man or something like that.
“But confidence goes a long way and honestly, as I continue to evaluate, as we continue to evaluate as a coaching staff, we’ll see.”
Patriots QB Mac Jones ‘Can Play Football’
It has been a steady fall for Jones since a promising rookie season after New England used the No. 15 pick in the 2021 NFL draft to make him the successor to Tom Brady.
The Patriots went 10-7 and he earned a Pro Bowl spot as a rookie, but he dropped to just 2-9 as a starter this year, with 10 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. His quarterback rating went from 92.5 as a rookie, to 84.8 in 2022, all the way down to 77.0 last year.
While Mayo has indicated that the Patriots will be looking for a quarterback this offseason, he also told WEEI that he feels Jones can still play. Whether he needs a change of scenery is the question.
Mac Jones is here for the Jerod Mayo presser
“But you know these guys can play football, they are here for a reason,” Mayo said on ” The Greg Hill Show.” “It’s not like we went over to Brockton High School and just pulled some people over here, right?
“These guys are players and at the end of the day, there has to be a shared vision. … The players have to really feel like they are being heard. They have to feel like they have some stake in the game plan. So if it doesn’t go right, the accountability piece starts to show up.”
Jerod Mayo: ‘There’s Enough Blame to Go Around’
That answer seems to point to Mayo saying that it was the Patriots coaches who led the way for Jones’ downfall, a sentiment that has gained some credence in recent weeks.
Belichick did not have much faith in Jones, according to reports, and even wanted the Patriots to make a move for Baker Mayfield, who wound up with the Buccaneers and led them to the playoffs.
“If you were to ask Mac Jones, he made mistakes along the way as well,” Mayo said. “The coaching staff, we made mistakes along the way as well. And I’m not just talking about the offensive coaching staff. One thing about Mac, everybody talks to Mac. Special teams, defensive players, offensive players, and we were trying to help him with that confidence.
“But I think everyone has (blame), there’s enough blame to go around.”