How Mac Jones Looked in His First Start Compared With Tom Brady

[TheRainMaker]

Mac10 is a Brady hating troll. Don't waste your time.

Oh, and he lives in the most powerful city of the planet.

Let’s see if you two can rekindle your rivalry.

 

[venecol]

Let’s see if you two can rekindle your rivalry.

Is he still in the Upper Crust?

 

[Wozzy]

Brady in his second year as a starter (2002) led the league in TDs. He was never just a game manager.

In 2001 Tom was ranked 24th in Yards Per Game, 14th in TD's or 11th in TD%, 22nd in INT's or 13th in INT%... he threw one TD and one INT in the entire playoffs. He was absolutely a game manager in 2001.

In 2002 they knew they had no chance to make noise in the playoffs and he ranked 3rd in overall pass attempts in the entire NFL, might as well develop the kid after all.

By 2003 he was running empty backfield sets and playing like one of the best QB's in the league... he still wasn't so much better than Peyton Manning, Trent Green, Marc Bulger, Brett Farve or Steve McNair and that alone is why they won rings... they won because New England was the best team in the NFL. They had the #1 ranked defense and a top 5 rushing offense in both 2003 and 2004... that may have had something to do with it.

If Mac Jones does very well it will be a combination of innate skill mixed with the team and support system around him. There won't likely be another Brady because that marriage of player and organization consistently putting competitive teams out there for two decades will be hard to replicate... not because Brady possesses supernatural powers.

Nostalgia does neither us or Mac Jones any favors. Mac has to crawl before he runs and every man has to do his own growing, no matter how tall his grandaddy was.

 

[Marko]

This is why most of the country hates this fandom.

No it’s not, they would hate any fan base that was on top for 20 years.

 

[NewEraWithMac]

Mac will have the better start to his career just because of where he played in college and his amazing last year at Bama beating out a 5 star recruit in the process.

As long as he doesn't develop an enormous ego like Brady did, he can stay on a path that was similar to Brady's production early on, or probably better since the rule changes completely favor offenses and QBs compared to 20 years ago.

 

[sb1]

I think there's a difference between a game manager and someone who has the reins on him for now. Brady was the latter at times when he started but not always. Mac right now has the reins on him too and for good reason.

Game manager to me means you're not good enough a QB to win a game so you want to make sure you don't make mistakes and let your defense or running game win it for you.

If Brady was a game manager in 2001 there is no way he would have driven the Pats to game winning FGs in the playoffs against the Raiders and the Super Bowl. You wouldn't let a game manager go for it all with no timeouts and a championship on the line where one mistake loses a Super Bowl. Not a chance.

 

[sb1]

As long as he doesn't develop an enormous ego like Brady did,

?

 

[A Defiant Goose]

I hope you were kidding...because...wow. I am going to ruin the story here a bit. If people's expectations are that Mac will be brady, you are setting yourself up for failure.

We are in a bad spot if these jokes can even be considered serious, are there really people who say that stuff unironically? lol

 

[sb1]

What you wrote can't be known. You don't know that. No one knows that.

It's very likely Mac (nor any QB not named Tom Brady) doesn't end up being the GOAT, but we have no way of knowing right now. To go a step further and say Mac "will never be in Brady's league" seems pretty negative. Maybe Mac won't ... but he might, right? Why not root for it?

Can't make a bunch of hypothetical statements that are contingent on future events that have yet to happen and say "the end".
No, it's not "the end", and that's the whole damn point of watching the games.

Of course. But nobody is doing Mac any favors if he's being compared to Brady all the time. Brady is a once in a lifetime athlete and yes it's extremely unlikely that Mac will ever measure up to that level. I've also said the same thing about Brady's first year but the only thing you could say about that is that a QB's first year doesn't make a career. Mac will make his own history here. I don't see why he can't win a title or two of his own.

 

[Steve102]

I don't know why we just can't let the kid be the kid.

 

[A Defiant Goose]

I don't know why we just can't let the kid be the kid.

I wish we could too, but I understand why it is the way it is. It's probably not going to die down for another year or two

 

[venecol]

As long as he doesn't develop an enormous ego like Brady did, he can stay on a path that was similar to Brady's production early on, or probably better since the rule changes completely favor offenses and QBs compared to 20 years ago.

Do you think that if he has an early path like Brady and is really good, he'll take a hometown discount to stay in NE instead of cashing in on $60M/year?

 

[sb1]

More interesting than a Brady comparison.
I'm looking back at rookie QB's NFL debuts as starters - Mac's debut last Sunday seems to be the best out of any NFL rookie starting QB since 2019 and I haven't checked any further back so maybe even before that.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

Do you think that if he has an early path like Brady and is really good, he'll take a hometown discount to stay in NE instead of cashing in on $60M/year?

No, because he's greedy and selfish unlike Tommy who is the greatest thing ever.

 

[NewEraWithMac]

?

You're questioning that?

I think there's a difference between a game manager and someone who has the reins on him for now. Brady was the latter at times when he started but not always. Mac right now has the reins on him too and for good reason.

Game manager to me means you're not good enough a QB to win a game so you want to make sure you don't make mistakes and let your defense or running game win it for you.

If Brady was a game manager in 2001 there is no way he would have driven the Pats to game winning FGs in the playoffs against the Raiders and the Super Bowl. You wouldn't let a game manager go for it all with no timeouts and a championship on the line where one mistake loses a Super Bowl. Not a chance.

Game Manager means "play with what the game gives you" or, really, situational football. In the playoffs in 2001, it called for what he did. In other big games like in postseasons later on mainly in 2007 and 2011, he forgot about being a proper game manager. It's like he was 2 different people.

Throwing 50 times a game from the shotgun for example, is not being a good game manager. It's being oblivious to the situation and taking risks with incompletions stopping the clock and being predictable at the same time. Once BB fixed that by drafting Garoppolo and working daily with him and Brady's dad saying "it would end ugly", only now does it all makes sense. Brady preferred the shotgun as he stated on WEEI's morning interview once, but the fading offense in those games is a reflection of bad game management. You do what the situation calls for.

Once Brady got under Center more in 2014, the team started winning lower scoring and closer games as well with much better playcalling and offensive management. That's not a coincidence with JimmyG standing there with a clipboard.

The sport isn't about stat collection. It's about playing as a TEAM and playing good situational football.

 

[Ivan]

Mac will never be as good as Brady. He will never be in Brady’s league nor in the conversation for GOAT.

And that’s ok. He has his own story to write. It’s a new era now and it’s Mac’s team.

The end.

I basically agree with this, comparing him to the GOAT is unfair, but there is no reason Jones couldn’t become as good as a lesser player, like say a Peyton Manning.

 

[NewEraWithMac]

No, because he's greedy and selfish unlike Tommy who is the greatest thing ever.

Right now Brady is doing daily interviews and mocking the Falcons like a classless 12 year old and also implying he wasn't supported here with HOF talent like Moss, Welker, Gronk or Edelman or the greatest OL coach in NFL history supporting him with top notch OLs. There are 2 different Bradys. The good, team one. And, the creepier phony one that's obsessed with self promotion and image with hair plugs and the like.

I like the former a lot better than the latter one and I think BB did, too. BB doesn't do hypocrisy or coach players who refuse to take the coaching.

 

[MahomestoKelce]

That's certainly the safe bet, given the numbers.... but only because of that. Right now he's a good rookie. You don't know that he can't be in that conversation. He's just gotta win like 8 SBs before we think about it.

I think it's fair to say Mac Jones will likely not do half of the following:

-Overcome a 10 point deficit in the 4th quarter to win in a snowstorm. Divisional Round game.

-Beat a 14 point favorite in the SB. While leading the game winning fg drive.

-Beat a 14 win SB favorite on the road. Chargers game. Trailing by 8 points in 4th.

- Nearly beat a superior opponent on the road in a dome. While most of the team has the flu. AFC title game.

- Go perfect in the regular season. 17-0. 19-0 sans a once in a billion lucky catch.

- Overcome two 14 point deficits at home to successfully beat a great defense. AFC Divisional Round game against Baltimore.

- Storm a ten point rally in the 4th quarter of the SB against a once in a generation type defense. A win btw.

- Throw 28 TD's against 2 interceptions in 12 games. 2016.

-Successfully overcome a 25 point deficit with like 20 minutes left in the SB.

- Win MVP at age 40. His 3rd league MVP.

- Shred the best defensive team in the league with an injured hand. Down 20-10 in the 4th and win 24-10. AFC title game.

-Throw 505 yards against a great defense in the SB at age 40. All the while his coach is benching key players and his defense is getting shredded.

- Concert three 3rd and 10's in OT against the best team in the league. On the road in a hostile environment. AFC Title Game.

- At age 42, with nothing to work with, put up better numbers than most of the QB's in the league.

-Go to the worst pro sports franchise and win a SB in year one. Beating three HOF QB's consecutively. Two of said games on the road.

-Still be a top 3 QB at age 44.

- Win 5 SB MVP's. 7 SB wins in total. 10 SB appearances.

By my count, Brady has won 5 (Raiders, Ravens, Seahawks, Falcons, and Jags) postseason games when trailing by 10 or more. 3 league MVP's. 18 pro bowls. 3 all pro's. Has every QB record imaginable it seems.

Jones will be great imo.

But Brady is the exception to every rule.

 

[MahomestoKelce]

I basically agree with this, comparing him to the GOAT is unfair, but there is no reason Jones couldn’t become as good as a lesser player, like say a Peyton Manning.

That's asking alot though. Manning is a consensus top 5 QB ever.

If Mac Jones become as good as Bledsoe, is that sufficient? Or, do Pats fans expect more?

I was way too young to be into football when Bledsoe played. I looked at past highlights.

 

[FreeTedWilliams]

if memory serves, Brady won his first start,
in a blowout
over Peyton Manning

comparison over