Ex-Patriots Staff Member Sounds off About Mac Jones Rumors

Former New England Patriots coaching assistant Michael Lombardi doesn’t buy the Mac Jones trade rumors.

Lombardi, who worked under head coach Bill Belichick from 2014 to 2015, said on “The GM Shuffle” podcast that it doesn’t fit with Belichick’s way of doing business. Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio reported last week that Belichick “shopped” the third-year quarterback to four different teams this offseason so far.

“The idea [Belichick] is shopping Mac is against everything he would do,” Lombardi said on the podcast. “First of all, he’s the most secretive person in the league. He’s not going to tell you anything he’s doing; even some people in the organization don’t know.”

“But if somebody comes to him and tells him, ‘I’ll give you a [first-round pick] for Mac,’ does that mean he’s shopping him? No. That just means somebody asked the question. I think we’re at a semantical issue here,” Lombardi added.

Jones looked promising in 2021 with 3,801 yards passing and 22 touchdowns, but he regressed amid injury in 2022 with 2,997 yards and 14 touchdowns. Backup quarterback Bailey Zappe jumped in and looked solid with 781 yards and five touchdowns in four games.

Matt Patricia lost his job as the offensive coordinator, and the Patriots hired offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien, who briefly crossed paths with Jones at Alabama according to Lombardi. Despite that move, Belichick didn’t commit to either Jones or Zappe as the starter during the week of the NFL Annual Meeting. Another report surfaced about added friction between Belichick and Jones, but it wasn’t publicly stated by either of them.

“Did the Patriots mess up with their decision with the staffing [last season]? That’s fairly obvious, and I think [Belichick’s] admitted that. Was Mac Jones’ behavior conducive to that of an ultimate leader? No. He’s got to admit that too,” Lombardi added. “So there’s culpability on both sides. The only way they’re going to improve is [acknowledging that] together.”

Jones Practices at Patriots Facilities

While rumors swirled about Jones on the trading block, he’s spent a chunk of this offseason at the Patriots’ facilities. ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported that Jones “has been a daily presence at Gillette Stadium — using the workout facilities and Socios.com Fieldhouse to throw” passes. Reiss also noted Jones is “one of a small handful of players who stayed in the region for the majority of the offseason” this year.

Jones will notably play under his third different offensive coordinator in 2023. He worked with Josh McDaniels in 2021 before the coach’s departure to the Las Vegas Raiders followed by the 2022 season with Patricia.

Jones Reaches Out for Autism Empowerment Month

Jones also reached out in the community once this offseason when he visited the League School in Boston for Autism Empowerment Month. He worked with students to make sushi out of candy ingredients, made stepping stones, and played games with the students according to Patriots.com’s Alexandra Francisco.