After a couple of solid performances in Weeks 7 and 8, New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones struggled yet again on Sunday afternoon, going just 24-for-44 with 220 yards, a touchdown and a crucial fourth-quarter interception that sealed the club’s loss to the Washington Commanders.
Now, to be fair to Jones, the interception (which came at the Commanders’ 41-yard line with just 36 seconds remaining) did bounce off the hands of wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, so it wasn’t necessarily his fault. Still, he didn’t play very well regardless of the pick, and afterward, Jones expressed that it’s difficult to remain confident under the circumstances.
“Yeah, it’s tough,” Jones said, via Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. “I think the biggest thing, like you said, is remaining confident in yourself. When you do everything you can every day, you should have no regrets. I have no regrets. I do need to do things better, but I’m always going to work hard and put in the hours. That’s all I can do, right? Motivate people around me to do it, as well. I’m always going to be the same person. Obviously, like you said, the results aren’t there right now. It stinks. There’s no excuses.”
The 2023 campaign has been a nightmarish one for Jones, who has totaled 1,861 yards, 10 touchdowns and a league-worst nine interceptions while completing 64.8 percent of his passes and posting a passer rating of 80.2. He has also been benched late in games twice in favor of Bailey Zappe.
Mac Jones, who played his collegiate football at the University of Alabama, was selected by the Patriots with the 15th overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft.
Not only has the 25-year-old shown no progression since his rookie year, but he has actually gone backward and has many wondering if New England will go in search of another quarterback this offseason.
With the Pats being just 2-7 and seeming headed for a very high pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, it certainly stands to reason that a different player could be under center in Foxborough next seaason.
The Patriots are off to their worst start since 2000, when they were also 2-7 through their first nine games in Bill Belichick’s first year as head coach.
New England will battle the Indianapolis Colts in Germany next Sunday.
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