Maybe.
Again, are we talking about a Josh offense with Mac on training wheels, like last season, or are we talking about a more vertical one like we tried at the beginning of this season, letting Mac cook? The Mac we saw last season was one that was heavily managed by Bill/Josh to minimize mistakes and relied on a run game, great D and STs to win games. It became apparent that to be a contender, you need to rely more on the vertical passing game to compete with the Bills/Chiefs/Bengals in the AFC.
Every single move this offseason was predicated on improving the vertical pass game: trade for Parker, draft Strange & Thornton, dump the FB, swap the tackles (theory: Brown would be better at protecting Mac's blindside & Wynn could handle RT), etc. The playbook was simplified to allow receivers to run routes faster, to get the ball out faster, etc.
Results: Mac led the league in INT%.
Reaction: go back to training wheels, shorten the passing game, eliminate mistakes.
Mac's (2021-22) record when D held opponent <20 pts: 13-2
Mac's (2021-22) record when D allowed opponent 20+ pts: 2-12
The 2 wins, both in '21: against Texans (his only 4QC-GWD) and Chargers. Chargers game (27-24):
Harris rush TD (7)
Folks 4 FGs (12)
Phillips INT TD (8)
Mac's stats: 51%, 217 yds, 0 TD, 0 Int, 70.8 rating.
Mac just hasn't proven to be clutch under Josh or Patricia. Let's see how he does in these remaining games.