Mac Jones Is Our QB1

Here are Mac's comments from yesterday on his performance. I think he does a good job of evaluating his performance and where he needs to improve. Dallas will be a good challenge for him and the team overall.


Through five games of his NFL career, it's been pretty apparent Mac Jones is hard on himself both in wins and losses.

On Sunday, he recorded his first professional game-winning drive in the 25-22 win over the Texans, but that doesn't mean it was all positives to be taken away.

During his Monday appearance with Merloni & Fauria, Jones was asked what will be going in his "improvement journal" this week.

“I think I let the other team touch the ball too much," he said. "Whether I was throwing it away or not, or just the attempting to pass needs to be better. Either our guy touches it, or nobody touches it. I can work on that, but I am not going to be gun-shy or anything like that. Just there’s a more methodical way to go about it in trying to get the guys the ball. And if it’s not there than go to my next read or throw it away so that there’s no place I can put the ball. I did that far too many times [Sunday].”

Jones finished the game 23-for-30 passing with 231 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

The rookie also discussed what it's been like working with Josh McDaniels during the games.

“He does a good job of coaching me hard, but at the same time sometimes I do things that in the game for whatever reason maybe I saw it one way and it really wasn’t, so he just likes to have those conversations with me and we’ve done a great job communicating during the game," he said. "He lets me play, which is great because you don’t want to be out there feeling like you’re trying to be one thing, and you can just go out there and play.

"Each week I just have to improve on doing it the right way and I feel like I honestly took a little bit of a step back there in doing exactly what I was supposed to do. Like I said, I let the other team touch the ball too many times and I’ll improve on that this week.”


The Patriots will host the Cowboys next Sunday afternoon.

 
A detailed film study of where Mac Jones is right now by Evan Lazar. (Hint: he's well ahead of the rookie curve)
After his 5th career start, Mac Jones is the 8th most accurate passer in the NFL. Not bad at all.

 
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Brady did not have a great arm especially compared to Bledsoe. He developed a much bigger arm as he developed his body and skills.
I believe the same can happen for Mac. Every young Qb has things to work on.

I think it's clear that Brady developed his ability to throw deep with zip and better accuracy over time. Some of that was probably his body/arm needed time to mature, but
part of it was that Brady learned to master the LOS first with highly-developed clock sense (from the beginning) and an accurate short game and gradually expanded his comfort zone to spread defenses out once he felt he could do so safely while protecting the ball. That process took several seasons. He would not risk turnovers and took a lot of criticism for not pushing it downfield, but I think he's throwing deep with better accuracy at 44 than he was at 26.

Brady sees the field as well or better than any QB who ever played and never quit working to be great. That is why he became the GOAT.

Jones is much further up the processing ladder than we could expect after 5 games, but there is still a lot he's yet to see and lock down. He ain't perfect yet and we have to remind ourselves that he's still a rookie from time-to-time because he doesn't play much like one at all.

He seems like a patient kid, but is going to need to figure out how to be a little more risk-averse while still moving the offense forward. There's the rub. He's going to get there and I think that over his next 5 games we're going to see, as good as he's been, an even better, sharper, smarter version. I have zero doubts that will happen.
 
I think it's clear that Brady developed his ability to throw deep with zip and better accuracy over time. Some of that was probably his body/arm needed time to mature, but
part of it was that Brady learned to master the LOS first with highly-developed clock sense (from the beginning) and an accurate short game and gradually expanded his comfort zone to spread defenses out once he felt he could do so safely while protecting the ball. That process took several seasons. He would not risk turnovers and took a lot of criticism for not pushing it downfield, but I think he's throwing deep with better accuracy at 44 than he was at 26.

Brady sees the field as well or better than any QB who ever played and never quit working to be great. That is why he became the GOAT.

Jones is much further up the processing ladder than we could expect after 5 games, but there is still a lot he's yet to see and lock down. He ain't perfect yet and we have to remind ourselves that he's still a rookie from time-to-time because he doesn't play much like one at all.

He seems like a patient kid, but is going to need to figure out how to be a little more risk-averse while still moving the offense forward. There's the rub. He's going to get there and I think that over his next 5 games we're going to see, as good as he's been, an even better, sharper, smarter version. I have zero doubts that will happen.

Without a doubt in my mind.
 
I think it's clear that Brady developed his ability to throw deep with zip and better accuracy over time. Some of that was probably his body/arm needed time to mature, but
part of it was that Brady learned to master the LOS first with highly-developed clock sense (from the beginning) and an accurate short game and gradually expanded his comfort zone to spread defenses out once he felt he could do so safely while protecting the ball. That process took several seasons. He would not risk turnovers and took a lot of criticism for not pushing it downfield, but I think he's throwing deep with better accuracy at 44 than he was at 26.

Brady sees the field as well or better than any QB who ever played and never quit working to be great. That is why he became the GOAT.

Jones is much further up the processing ladder than we could expect after 5 games, but there is still a lot he's yet to see and lock down. He ain't perfect yet and we have to remind ourselves that he's still a rookie from time-to-time because he doesn't play much like one at all.

He seems like a patient kid, but is going to need to figure out how to be a little more risk-averse while still moving the offense forward. There's the rub. He's going to get there and I think that over his next 5 games we're going to see, as good as he's been, an even better, sharper, smarter version. I have zero doubts that will happen.
His deep ball is terrible, easily the weakest part of his game. Even when he got injured in 2008 on that attempt to Moss, his form was terrible. Slow and poor trajectory on the ball. Sorry, but it's true. It's almost like he was hesitant to see the shot and take it. It was pretty rare that he'd hit one, unless off playaction with the player wide open. A lot of the times the WR would have to slow down, come back or wait on the ball.
 
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I'll take accuracy over arm strength every day. Jones has nice zip on the ball when he needs too, I have no issues with his arm strength at this point.
Arm strength is so important to media talking heads and such a useless stat. Rohan Davey had arm strength up the wazoo. So what. Of all the physical attributes of a passer, accuracy trumps EVERYTHING. Putting the ball where you want to put it. If you can do that, a cannon arm is useless.

Any QB who played successfully in college has enough arm strength, otherwise he wouldn't have been successful. But to be a good QB you need to be accurate. Moving up to a great QB requires more: mental attributes. That's what made Brady really great. And Manning. Grasping the mental aspects of NFL vs NCAA is the biggest hurdle rookie QBs face IMO. It takes a while to adjust. BB took his time bringing Brady along. Let's do the same with Jones. Remember, Brady had a whole year of learning the NFL game before he started actually playing. Jones is learning on the fly and doing it incredibly well. I don't think we appreciate how rare that is. Manning started as a rookie and went (I think) 3-13 his first year before going 13-3 his second year. If Mac Jones can do that we should all be happy
 
I think it's clear that Brady developed his ability to throw deep with zip and better accuracy over time. Some of that was probably his body/arm needed time to mature, but
part of it was that Brady learned to master the LOS first with highly-developed clock sense (from the beginning) and an accurate short game and gradually expanded his comfort zone to spread defenses out once he felt he could do so safely while protecting the ball. That process took several seasons. He would not risk turnovers and took a lot of criticism for not pushing it downfield, but I think he's throwing deep with better accuracy at 44 than he was at 26.

Brady sees the field as well or better than any QB who ever played and never quit working to be great. That is why he became the GOAT.

Jones is much further up the processing ladder than we could expect after 5 games, but there is still a lot he's yet to see and lock down. He ain't perfect yet and we have to remind ourselves that he's still a rookie from time-to-time because he doesn't play much like one at all.

He seems like a patient kid, but is going to need to figure out how to be a little more risk-averse while still moving the offense forward. There's the rub. He's going to get there and I think that over his next 5 games we're going to see, as good as he's been, an even better, sharper, smarter version. I have zero doubts that will happen.
Agree 100 percent with this. This is true of all QBs of course, not just Brady. I mean look at Herbert in year 2 vs year 1. Look at Murray now and of course Allen in year 4 might be the best QB in the AFC.

I think it is always a maturation process as well as a physical process. How much time and effort Mac puts in to his body and the mental aspect of the game will determine how much he progresses.

McD was taking a bit of beating on the game thread and I don't understand why. I mean I did not like some of the red area calls last game but overall, I think he has done a great job with Mac. I think this year is all about progression and development. Rookie QBs just don't win in their rookie season much and that is Ok. I agree that there could be a sizable jump with him later this season and certainly into next season.

My issue with him from the get go was his arm strength. I think he makes up a lot with timing and accuracy. My thinking is maybe he is more in the mode of Drew Brees. Not sure what you think of that comparison. But ball placement is key. I also agree with Tommy that he has to learn to climb the pocket and stop drifting back and throwing balls down the middle. Again, that will come too.

I was also thinking when I watched him during the red zone possession when we screened three times. One of those screens was blown up from the start where you could see the LB sitting on Bolden. Mac threw it anyway and it went for a loss. As he matures, he will throw that at Bolden's feet and just take the incomplete instead of the loss. Those are the nuances of the position and I think overall he has processed a ton really well. I also feel much better about the TE position. I think we could see Henry flourish the second half of the season.
 
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Arm strength is so important to media talking heads and such a useless stat. Rohan Davey had arm strength up the wazoo. So what. Of all the physical attributes of a passer, accuracy trumps EVERYTHING. Putting the ball where you want to put it. If you can do that, a cannon arm is useless.

Any QB who played successfully in college has enough arm strength, otherwise he wouldn't have been successful. But to be a good QB you need to be accurate. Moving up to a great QB requires more: mental attributes. That's what made Brady really great. And Manning. Grasping the mental aspects of NFL vs NCAA is the biggest hurdle rookie QBs face IMO. It takes a while to adjust. BB took his time bringing Brady along. Let's do the same with Jones. Remember, Brady had a whole year of learning the NFL game before he started actually playing. Jones is learning on the fly and doing it incredibly well. I don't think we appreciate how rare that is. Manning started as a rookie and went (I think) 3-13 his first year before going 13-3 his second year. If Mac Jones can do that we should all be happy

Rohan did, for sure and so did Ryan Mallett. The list of rocket/laser guys is endless with Jeff George as their patron saint. He could throw a ball through a brick wall but couldn't hit a WR often enough to have a good career. There are hundreds of guys like that. It's a great topic for convo, but you are exactly correct that the media is confuses arm talent with the ability to just throw long and hard. Those are different things.

My brother loves to recall the story first used, I believe, about Art Schlichter who was said to be able to throw a ball 60 yards from his knees (or something like that) when he was the next big thing coming out of Ohio State. That same cliche has breathlessly been repeated every year since with Mahomes, Josh Allen and even Cardale Jones as some recent knee-throwing champions. Anyhow, Schlichter was the 4th overall pick by the Colts because he was going to be THE MAN, but throwing from your knees is entirely irrelevant to being a pro QB. Schlichter had other issues going on, but had a grand total of 3 TD passes in his 3 years in the NFL.
 
sure, cold, snow, will be another challenge. that said, i was VERY impressed with how mac handled the rain. 0 issues. i believe most qbs would rather play in snow than rain.

Brady did not have a great arm especially compared to Bledsoe. He developed a much bigger arm as he developed his body and skills.
I believe the same can happen for Mac. Every young Qb has things to work on.
Mac should be able to build arm strength like Brady did, but I actually think he's starting from ahead of where Brady was at least in terms of accuracy. It's hard to tell because so much of 01 has been mythologized because of the way it ended, but Rex Ryan's depiction of Mac Jones with a "pop gun", is utter bullshit.
 
Mac should be able to build arm strength like Brady did, but I actually think he's starting from ahead of where Brady was at least in terms of accuracy. It's hard to tell because so much of 01 has been mythologized because of the way it ended, but Rex Ryan's depiction of Mac Jones with a "pop gun", is utter bullshit.
I really don't think you can compare anything to 2001 whether positive or negative. It was a completely different league. I have said this before but it is far more accurate to compare Mac to the top rookie QBs of the past 5 years - Lamar, Mayfield, Mahomes, Herbert, Murray. That is the NFL he is playing in.

Rex Ryan is a clown. We have always known that.
 
I think McD deserves the criticism inside the RZ especially because that was a problem in recent years even before Brady left.

But otherwise, I don't see much to complain about with Mac, McD and the offense given the situation we're facing. Tons of to be optimistic about.
 
I think McD deserves the criticism inside the RZ especially because that was a problem in recent years even before Brady left.

But otherwise, I don't see much to complain about with Mac, McD and the offense given the situation we're facing. Tons of to be optimistic about.
Agreed, we have RZ targets, let the kid use them. Right now Mac is the least of the Pats problems, the O-line and run D are far more concerning to me.
 
Arm strength is so important to media talking heads and such a useless stat. Rohan Davey had arm strength up the wazoo. So what. Of all the physical attributes of a passer, accuracy trumps EVERYTHING. Putting the ball where you want to put it. If you can do that, a cannon arm is useless.

Any QB who played successfully in college has enough arm strength, otherwise he wouldn't have been successful. But to be a good QB you need to be accurate. Moving up to a great QB requires more: mental attributes. That's what made Brady really great. And Manning. Grasping the mental aspects of NFL vs NCAA is the biggest hurdle rookie QBs face IMO. It takes a while to adjust. BB took his time bringing Brady along. Let's do the same with Jones. Remember, Brady had a whole year of learning the NFL game before he started actually playing. Jones is learning on the fly and doing it incredibly well. I don't think we appreciate how rare that is. Manning started as a rookie and went (I think) 3-13 his first year before going 13-3 his second year. If Mac Jones can do that we should all be happy
Absolutely agree 100% on everything you said. The Mental aspect is far more important than being able to heave a ball 80 yards. Mike Vick could throw the ball 80 yards and still miss the broad side of a barn. Arm strength without accuracy is nothing but arm strength.

Manning also had Marvin Harrison then the following year they got Edgerrin James. But I understand your point and I agree.
 
I really don't think you can compare anything to 2001 whether positive or negative. It was a completely different league. I have said this before but it is far more accurate to compare Mac to the top rookie QBs of the past 5 years - Lamar, Mayfield, Mahomes, Herbert, Murray. That is the NFL he is playing in.

Rex Ryan is a clown. We have always known that.
No it isn't, he has a different style of play from the ones you mentioned above. Jones is more of a pocket passer, so we should compare him to other pocket passers.
 
I really don't think you can compare anything to 2001 whether positive or negative. It was a completely different league. I have said this before but it is far more accurate to compare Mac to the top rookie QBs of the past 5 years - Lamar, Mayfield, Mahomes, Herbert, Murray. That is the NFL he is playing in.
That's somewhat true in terms of directly comparing stats, though you can still compare stats indirectly, as in comparing them to the rest of the league.

But here people were just comparing QB's development curve - understanding the mental aspects of the game, avoiding the killer rookie error tendencies, and body development wrt arm strength. That seems like a perfectly reasonable comparison to make.

As I've said before, Mac's body is clearly pretty immature and underdeveloped. So just being in a typical pro strength and conditioning system it would be almost impossible for his arm strength not to continue to develop. The extent of it is totally up to him and his dedication to working hard and working smart. I think in terms of the arm strength and grasp of the offense, he's ahead of where Brady was in 2001. In terms of avoiding the big errors and rookie mistakes, somewhere around even (I'd have to go back and rewatch a bunch of those games). In terms of just having that clutch gene...we hadn't seen much of it by game 5 in 2001, but from what I've seen so far Mac isn't at Brady's level there. Few are. That said, Mac certainly hasn't ever appeared overwhelmed by a moment except twice that come to mind. That panicked pass/fumble in game 1, and that bad INT in week...whatever week that was. But Brady had his share of those as a rookie, too. We just washed them out of our collective memory.
 
Rex Ryan is 3-9 against the Patriots, and they got him run out of two jobs. :coffee:
 
My issue with him from the get go was his arm strength. I think he makes up a lot with timing and accuracy. My thinking is maybe he is more in the mode of Drew Brees. Not sure what you think of that comparison. But ball placement is key. I also agree with Tommy that he has to learn to climb the pocket and stop drifting back and throwing balls down the middle. Again, that will come too.

It's a pretty good comparison. I always liked Brees and thought the Chargers made a mistake when they moved on from him for (ultimately) Phillip Rivers. Brees was smallish but an outstanding athlete, so it's not a like-for-like comparison, but in terms of the mental side of the game and way they throw I think it's plausible and something to hope for.

I love Mac, but I don't know if I want to predict that he'll be one of the best QBs in football history after 5 games in the show.
 
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