Following a promising rookie season, New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones will be leaned upon even more this upcoming year to help the franchise take the next step back to its shortly removed glory days.
Jones has received loads of praise from the media who attended New England’s OTAs this summer and his teammates have also shared anecdotes of his improved ability and chemistry. Now head coach Bill Belichick shared his own evaluation of where Jones stands heading into training camp and he has echoed those who’ve praised Jones before him saying he’s seen “dramatic improvement.”
"In all areas, I think there's a dramatic improvement… he's starting from a much, much higher point this year."
Bill Belichick breaks down how Mac Jones has improved his game during the offseason 👀 pic.twitter.com/Pb0PwvjfbD
— NBC Sports Boston's Patriots Coverage (@NBCSPatriots) July 26, 2022
“I think Mac’s done a great job,” Belichick said on Tuesday. “He’s worked extremely hard. He’s got a tremendous work ethic. In all areas, I think there’s a dramatic improvement – his physical work and conditioning, working on his mechanics, working on his footwork, working on his understanding of our offense, of opponent defenses, of situations, all those things. We’ve talked about all those things in varying degrees, some more emphasis than others, and the emphasis on some other things maybe will come later on. Can’t do it all at once, but he’s worked hard.
“He’s made tremendous strides. He did a great job last year, but he’s starting from a much, much higher point this year than where he started last year. His offseason work has been significant, and I think everyone recognizes how well he prepares and how much further along he was then he was a year ago.”
After being selected with the 15th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Jones won the starting job during the preseason and led the Patriots to a 10-7 record and a birth to the playoffs. Through the 17-game regular season, Jones threw for 3,801 yards, with 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions while completing 67% of his passes.
Jones’ apparent steep improvement comes as a comfort to Patriots fans who share many concerns on the offensive side of the ball leading into 2022. The play calling is largely the biggest question mark going into the season as former offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels left to become the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, leaving Jones with a former defensive coordinator, Matt Patricia, and former special teams coach, Joe Judge, to handle offensive duties.
*Get the BEST Alabama football insider information, message board access, and recruiting coverage today! SIGN UP HERE to unlock our subscriber only content!*
