The New England Patriots have already made significant changes ahead of the 2024 NFL season, but they don’t seem to be done. The quarterback situation remains a big question mark in Foxborough, with Mac Jones‘ future still uncertain.
The Alabama product lost the starting job halfway through 2023, and even though Bill Belichick is gone, his chances of starting this year are unclear. But are there any options for him out there? According to Greg Bedard of the Boston Sports Journal, the Seattle Seahawks are a team to watch.
“One thing that I’ve picked up in the last couple of weeks is that one team to keep an eye on for Mac Jones is the (Seattle) Seahawks,” Bedard said on the “Greg Bedard Patriots Podcast” with Nick Cattles, via NESN. “Elliot Wolf and John Schneider worked together in Green Bay. So that’s easy. It’ll be interesting to see who Wolf and (Alonzo) Highsmith do trade with. … I think John Schneider is a guy who looks back at his college evaluations of players. I think that he liked Mac Jones coming out. I think a lot of people are wondering what exactly happened to him here, and they’re probably doing due diligence with the Patriots on that.”
The 25-year-old has so far failed to build on an impressive rookie season with the Patriots, eventually becoming the face of a struggling offense in the last couple of years. The Seahawks seem to be just fine with Geno Smith, but a younger signal-caller with potential to get his career back on track like Jones could be an interesting opportunity this offseason.
Mac Jones #10 of the New England Patriots looks on before the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Gillette Stadium on December 17, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
“Geno Smith is not their franchise quarterback for multiple years, so why not take a chance, a flyer on a Mac Jones to get him evaluated?” Beard said.
Jones takes many steps back after rookie season
Selected with the 15th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Jones was immediately given the reins of the Patriots’ offense as the franchise was hoping to find its first franchise quarterback in the post Tom Brady era.
Belichick didn’t hesitate to remove Cam Newton, who served as QB in the first season without Brady, and Jones paid back the coach’s confidence with solid performances in his rookie year.
In 2021, the Florida native completed 67.6 of his passes for 3,801 yards, 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions to lead the Pats to their first playoff appearance since Brady left. But his numbers declined in the next two years.
2022 was challenging, as Jones completion rate decreased (65.2), just like his passing yards (2,997) and touchdowns (14) while the team finished with a losing record and missed the postseason.
Mac Jones takes the field prior to the game against the New York Giants.
The Patriots hit rock bottom in 2023
2023 was even worse, as Jones never found a spark and got benched by second-year QB Bailey Zappe with the Patriots already thinking about the next year despite having many weeks left.
In the end, Jones finished his third year with a 64.9 completion rate, 2,120 passing yards, 10 TDs and 12 INTs. Meanwhile, New England had its worst season under Belichick, finishing bottom of the AFC East at 4-13.
To be fair, the Patriots haven’t surrounded him with top talent, plus the constant moves at offensive coordinator haven’t been helpful either. After all, Jones is still a work in progress. We’ll have to wait and see whether the Patriots or other teams see it that way this offseason.
