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The New England Patriots‘ quest to find their QB of the future has already begun. The journey started with an interview of top prospects at the Senior Bowl.
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Mac Jones Meets With Patriots Representatives
Alabama’s Mac Jones is one of the top prospects at quarterback ahead of the 2021 NFL Draft. Like many other hopefuls, Jones is at the Senior Bowl looking to improve his draft stock and to dispel some of the negative narratives surrounding his ability to perform at the NFL level.
Jones has been tabbed for the Patriots for the past several weeks and is showing up with regularity as New England’s pick with the No. 15 pick overall on mock drafts. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. has Jones landing in New England.
On Thursday, Jones met with the Patriots scouts after the Senior Bowl practices, per The Boston Globe’s Jim McBride and that’s sure to take the conversation to the next level.
Jones Shined at the Senior Bowl Practices
Throughout the practice sessions, Jones has performed well. Most on-lookers and analysts have come away impressed with his poise and passing accuracy. We know both of those qualities are things the Patriots’ brass will hold in high regard. This throw from Jones made the rounds on Wednesday and shows off his touch in a tight window.
Seeing Jones have success outside of the cocoon of Alabama talent likely made an impression on NFL scouts. Many Bama quarterbacks have proven to be products of the school’s system and enormous talent at every position.
Perhaps Jones is different.
Jones Injured, May Not Play in the Game
On Thursday, Jones tweaked his ankle a bit on this play.
As a result, there is a chance he will not play in the game on Saturday.
While risking further injury is obviously something Jones should try to avoid, it might be beneficial for him to play and shine in the actual game rather than just the practices.
We’ll see how that plays out.
Belichick Wasn’t Present
The spotlight is on Bill Belichick even heavier than normal these days. The legendary head coach’s name is constantly thrown about as people debate the Brady-Belichick storyline.
Meanwhile, Belichick is putting things in place to improve upon the Patriots’ 7-9 season in 2020. Belichick wasn’t present for the Senior Bowl, but as was mentioned above, the team did deploy scouts to check out the talent who will assumingly report back to Belichick their findings.
At the end of the day, the decisions on player personnel will come from Belichick and he has long had an affinity with Alabama players since his friend and former colleague Nick Saban has been the head coach of the legendary program.
Because of that history, it wouldn’t come as a shock to see Belichick take Jones in the first round if he’s available at No. 15. However, if the Patriots plan to aggressively pursue a big-name quarterback in a trade, they will almost certainly need to part ways with that pick to pull off a deal. Expect for this offseason to be a very busy one for the Patriots and things are just getting underway with the Senior Bowl.
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