From Phil Perry (is he a clickbating media whore?).
"The circumstances at the moment aren't ideal, and it's worth looking at the coaching situation to see how much they're doing to help Jones develop.
The Patriots are at the bottom of the league when it comes to using quarterback-friendly concepts like play-action passes and run-pass option calls. They're last in play-action pass percentage this season (10.8 percent of Jones' throws) despite the fact that Jones is a top-10 quarterback when it comes to his yards-per-attempt figure when using play-action (9.8, 9th), according to Pro Football Focus. RPOs were a part of the plan in Week 2 -- Jones pushed for those to be incorporated into the offense in 2022 -- but he still hasn't thrown an RPO pass just yet, per Pro Football Reference.
How the staff has prepared Jones and the rest of the offense for opposing blitz packages is worthwhile, too. Last year, the rookie had a rating of 87.6 against the blitz, according to PFF. Jones had an adjusted completion percentage of 73.6 and a 7-to-4 touchdown-to-interception ratio, absorbing 16 sacks on 196 blitzes faced (8 percent) in 2021. This year, Jones is last in the NFL with a 32.3 rating against the blitz. He has an adjusted completion percentage of 50.0 and a 0-to-3 touchdown-to-interception ratio, absorbing four sacks on 31 blitzes faced (13 percent).
Taking a closer look at how Jones has been protected, he's faced pressure on at least 30 percent of his dropbacks -- blitzed or not -- in each of the last two games. Jones faced that much pressure in six games last season, four of which came with starting right tackle Trent Brown (now starting at left tackle) out injured. Jones left his Week 1 game in Miami this year with a back injury after taking a violent hit when faced with an all-out blitz. Jones left his Week 3 game with the Ravens with an ankle injury that could threaten his availability for Week 4 and beyond.
Jones is currently last in the NFL in quarterback rating across situations (76.2) due in large part to his league-leading five interceptions. But are those turnovers just the cost of doing business in an offense that has a "different philosophy," as Jones explained when detailing his Week 2 interception in Pittsburgh?
That change in philosophy is clear. Jones is third in the NFL this season in average depth of target (10.4 yards) and leads the NFL in yards on deep passes that have traveled at least 20 yards or more (309 yards). But to what end? In targeting the team's No. 1 down-the-field option DeVante Parker -- whose deep-threat role is about as well-defined as any wideout in the league -- Jones has now been picked off four times.
There's a give and take there that Jones alluded to earlier this week when I asked him about the emphasis on deep attempts this season.
"I think explosive plays are always good," Jones said. "I think a lot of the really good teams in the NFL make explosive plays. Just being able to do that and then also hold on to the ball and have a fine line between the two I think is really important."
But there are fair questions to be asked as to whether or not the personnel usage by the coaching staff has supported Jones sufficiently. Kendrick Bourne has found himself at the bottom of the receiver depth chart despite some advanced metrics suggesting he's one of the most underrated receivers in football. Patriots tight ends Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry have disappeared from a production standpoint.
And there are moments -- whether there's a player at the line of scrimmage who doesn't understand an audible, or ball-security problems (they're second-to-last in the NFL in giveaways with eight) -- when it's clear there's a lack of attention to detail on that side of the ball."
Phil Perry’s latest mailbag tackles your questions on Mac Jones as the long-term answer in New England, Brian Hoyer’s leash as the starter, the plan vs. the Packers and much more.
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