Mac Jones last two weeks

[Jlaff]

Jones completed 68.6% of his passes last week against the Cardinals. He was 24 for 35 for 235, 0 TDs, and 1 INT. Not great numbers, but not bad numbers especially when you factor the INT wasn't his fault and the Pats ran the ball for two scores (one was a first and goal off a 39 yard pass from Jones to Henry).

Yesterday was an awful game for Jones, but I am not sure why you are combining the two games to make it look like last week's game was also a bad game for Jones.

Rob, I think it's time to tell the forum your secret.

Mac is Rob's nephew. There, I said it. No one needs to wonder any longer.

 

[sb1]

If Zappe was already great he would be the permanent starter today. Not even a question about it. Shouldn’t be that hard to take the starter job away from one of the worst starters in the league which unfortunately Mac is right now.

But he’s not great and therefore isn’t the starter.

Seems like BB agrees. Case closed.

 

[catent]

Rob, I think it's time to tell the forum your secret.

Mac is Rob's nephew. There, I said it. No one needs to wonder any longer.

Is this true?

It’s always hard to distinguish between tongue-in-cheek sarcasm and a serious post on the Internet, but this one would explain a lot.

 

[mike_usagisan]

Is this true?

It’s always hard to distinguish between tongue-in-cheek sarcasm and a serious post on the Internet, but this one would explain a lot.

No. It’s not true.

 

[Drunken Cicerone]

Mac Jones in a perfect situation is a serviceable NFL backup. He’s in far from a perfect situation

This team needs a major overhaul

 

[Jlaff]

Is this true?

It’s always hard to distinguish between tongue-in-cheek sarcasm and a serious post on the Internet, but this one would explain a lot.

No, but I agree it would be so believable.

The Mac Jones excuse brigade knows no boundaries.

"His line isn't protecting him"
"Ok, the line held up but it's still all the OC's fault"
"It's only his second year"
"Ok, Zappe did good as a first year with the same OC and the same line but Mac just hasn't had the chance to play against the worst defensive teams in the league like Zappe did"
"Ok, so he didn't do well against the new worst defensive teams in the league but it's still the OC's fault"
"... Batted balls... last year's stats... the Vikings game... he needs a full 3 years... other QBs make mistakes too... ignore the 7 TDs... Fat Matt...Cam Newton!!!!"

 

[MrBigglesWorth]

Maybe next week the offense will break out versus just managing a few fgs

 

[Pats2000]

Yes they were. Not all of them. But a lot of them. He had excellent pocket presence for a rookie. He had great accuracy. He was able to go through his progression effectively. If anything he was too fast at times.

His problems last year were he could get sped up on blitzes (not unique for him as a rookie QB) and deep passes.

You do realize that Jones spread around the ball quite a bit last year because he was very good at finding the open receiver. He had six receivers with 28 catches or more. That is the same amount as Brady in 2018 and 2019. And no I am not saying he is anything like Brady. Just giving an example how Jones spread around the ball and found the open man.

My recollection of Jones is clearly more spot on than your’s. But I am remembering the guy who nearly beat Romo’s rookie completion record and was almost OROY. You seem to remember Jones as a guy much like he is this year.

I remember a guy that made a lot of short throws and was a bottom of the league deep ball QB. He went 22 of 58 for 690 yards 4 TDs and 4 INT. JMD was good at masking Jones short comings. They played the quick game, short throws, lots of screens and a strong run game. They schemed guys open and Jones made a lot of 1 read throws. It was fun watching him, but the fact is, he didn't read the D well, his pocket presence was meh, he would bail too quick and often step into pressure, making his lines life much harder. Part of the struggle is teams understand his weaknesses now. He needs to adapt and the fact that for whatever reason he cant/ won't run play action off the back of a running game like that is just a killer.

 

[BaconGrundleCandy]

I remember a guy that made a lot of short throws and was a bottom of the league deep ball QB. He went 22 of 58 for 690 yards 4 TDs and 4 INT. JMD was good at masking Jones short comings. They played the quick game, short throws, lots of screens and a strong run game. They schemed guys open and Jones made a lot of 1 read throws. It was fun watching him, but the fact is, he didn't read the D well, his pocket presence was meh, he would bail too quick and often step into pressure, making his lines life much harder. Part of the struggle is teams understand his weaknesses now. He needs to adapt and the fact that for whatever reason he cant/ won't run play action off the back of a running game like that is just a killer.

Saying his pocket presence was excellent is laughable. He took some really bad sacks last year. Actually that's one thing he's improved on this year. He took some bad sacks and couldn't ID second level pressure either. He was an average NFL QB last year. Good for a rookie but hardly excellent.

 

[Pats2000]

Saying his pocket presence was excellent is laughable. He took some really bad sacks last year. Actually that's one thing he's improved on this year. He took some bad sacks and couldn't ID second level pressure either. He was an average NFL QB last year. Good for a rookie but hardly excellent.

Thank you, I've been saying this since last year. @Rob0729 still think he had awesome pocket presence?

 

[Brotherblues]

Apologies if someone mentioned this and I missed it.

Yesterday there was a stretch of (and this isn't hyperbole) about 20 or so passes that went for 17 yards. That's a 20 pass stretch that averaged less than a yard per attempt. Some were bad plays, but many were also bad decisions and/or bad throws (i.e. a "deep" shot where both Agholor and the DB had to stop and stand there waiting for the ball).

Look, I love Bill and I'll never be ungrateful. It's just... Really hard seeing the level of historic incompetence I saw yesterday against a truly bad defense. Especially with a team that really does have the talent but is being sabotaged by shorthanded and incompetent offensive and special teams coaching staffs.

 

[gobesmug]

Its hard to figure out where exactly Mac is, due to the situation hes in...But at some point, we have to be critical of his play

Critical of the coaches who are putting him in a position to fail as well

 

[Rob0729]

Saying his pocket presence was excellent is laughable. He took some really bad sacks last year. Actually that's one thing he's improved on this year. He took some bad sacks and couldn't ID second level pressure either. He was an average NFL QB last year. Good for a rookie but hardly excellent.

I will give you that. Jones was always on his back last year. It was so bad that only 23 QBs were sacked more than Jones last year. Seriously, only 23. I mean that means Jones was sacked more than most of the league right?

BTW, he was tied with Mahomes and Cousins for the 24th most sacked QB. So only six teams had a QB who was sacked less than Jones last year.

Jones was sacked 28 times last year in 17 games (1.6 times a game). He has been sacked 26 times this year in 11 games (2.4 times a game). But of course you think he is better this year.

You Mac Jones haters just make up an alternate reality for what Jones was last year. Maybe if I watched the Mac Jones you all made up in your heads last year, I would hate him too.

NFL Conference Passing Stat Leaders, 2021 Regular Season - ESPN

ESPN is the place for NFL stats! Discover the Offense Passing stat leaders of the 2021 NFL Regular Season.

www.espn.com

 

[PatsWSB47]

I need to give you credit the number of excuses you come up for Mac is really impressive

I used to that with Bledsoe

 

[Rob0729]

I remember a guy that made a lot of short throws and was a bottom of the league deep ball QB. He went 22 of 58 for 690 yards 4 TDs and 4 INT. JMD was good at masking Jones short comings. They played the quick game, short throws, lots of screens and a strong run game. They schemed guys open and Jones made a lot of 1 read throws. It was fun watching him, but the fact is, he didn't read the D well, his pocket presence was meh, he would bail too quick and often step into pressure, making his lines life much harder. Part of the struggle is teams understand his weaknesses now. He needs to adapt and the fact that for whatever reason he cant/ won't run play action off the back of a running game like that is just a killer.

If you don't believe me that Jones listen to Kurt Warner who you Mac Haters seem to love.

"I really like him," Warner said. "I'm a firm believer that if you know what you're looking at, and know where to get your eyes quickly, and you can make different kinds of throws, you can always be successful as long as your skill set is good enough at whatever level you're playing.

"You saw it for 20 years with Tom [Brady]. He knew what to look at. He knew how to get the ball out of his hands. He knew exactly where to throw it. And that's exactly what I see with this young kid."

Kurt Warner impressed with Patriots QB Mac Jones, says rookie's ceiling still a mystery

The former MVP says the next step for Jones is proving he can consistently make "off-platform throws, or throws when guys are in your face."

www.espn.com

"One of the things I loved about Mac last year is that he's so good at processing information. Sometimes last year I thought he processed information too fast, meaning he got off certain reads too quickly because they hadn't developed," Warner told ESPN's Mike Reiss. "This year, I think they've kind of taken his superpower away because they've simplified everything."

Are Patriots failing Mac Jones? Kurt Warner, Dan Orlovsky share concerning takes

Former NFL quarterbacks Kurt Warner and Dan Orlovsky are on the same page regarding who deserves blame for Mac Jones' struggles this season -- and what the consequences may be.

news.yahoo.com

And Warner's biggest complaint about him in his first year is that he checked down too quickly at times. But hey, sometimes your first read is your fourth checkdown. You just don't actually read the first three guys you look at.

Again, I feel bad for you Mac Haters because you watched a different Mac Jones last year than the rest of the world.

 

[Ras-IR Dowling]

If Zappe was already great he would be the permanent starter today. Not even a question about it. Shouldn’t be that hard to take the starter job away from one of the worst starters in the league which unfortunately Mac is right now.

But he’s not great and therefore isn’t the starter.

Seems like BB agrees. Case closed.

I think it’s fair to question many of Bills decisions these days.

 

[Rob0729]

Rob, I think it's time to tell the forum your secret.

Mac is Rob's nephew. There, I said it. No one needs to wonder any longer.

No, I am just related to reality. Something that seems foreign to you Mac Haters.

 

[Ian]

Cardinals pass defense

237.6 YPG (23rd)
7.1 YPA (18th)
69.7% comp pct. against (32nd)
99.0 passer rating against (30th)
25 TDs (30th)
43.2 third down pct. (25th)

Their #1 CB Byron Murphy was inactive. The pats scored 20 points & went 3/11 on 3rd down. Mac was not good vs. them IMO.

I meant his numbers statistically at Arizona. Sunday was bad enough where those are carrying the original totals. As I mentioned, that was his worst career game, ahead of the second meeting against the Bills last year, which had been his previous worst.

 

[Ian]

No, I am just related to reality. Something that seems foreign to you Mac Haters.

I've obviously tried also to remain fair, but in all honesty, with three games left, he needs to step up. Otherwise, like Jones this past offseason, Zappe is also going to get stronger heading into 2023. Let's not kid anyone, I'm sure he sees an opportunity to seize the job given what's transpired, and he should, because I'd be mad if he didn't. He did what was asked of him and I'm glad they drafted him.

Right now, Jones is a better QB, given his level of experience after two seasons in the league and the edge he gained physically. But that playing field is about to be leveled out after the season ends. Not to mention Jones is about to play two key games at home with everything on the line in both. This could - and will - get ugly if he doesn't perform because there's a large majority of fans who are frustrated. He needs to perform in spite of Matt and get it done, because if not, it absolutely will hurt him heading into next year.

 

[Rob0729]

I've obviously tried also to remain fair, but in all honesty, with three games left, he needs to step up. Otherwise, like Jones this past offseason, Zappe is also going to get stronger heading into 2023. Let's not kid anyone, I'm sure he sees an opportunity to seize the job given what's transpired, and he should, because I'd be mad if he didn't. He did what was asked of him and I'm glad they drafted him.

Right now, Jones is a better QB, given his level of experience after two seasons in the league and the edge he gained physically. But that playing field is about to be leveled out after the season ends. Not to mention Jones is about to play two key games at home with everything on the line in both. This could - and will - get ugly if he doesn't perform. And it absolutely will hurt him heading into next year.

If Jones plays like he did on Sunday over the remaining games, he might get traded in the offseason. Could be what he wants.

I still don't see Jones losing his starting job if he played like he has over the previous month or so prior to yesterday. It certainly hasn't been anything to write home about for the most part, but considering what is working against him it hasn't been bad either.

But as for Zappe, I just look at that Bears game and watched the Bears not even try to rush Zappe and just clog the passing lanes making it hard for him to throw and I think that is just a blueprint to stop him. We are seeing that with Russell Wilson more now too now that he is more of a pure pocket passer. If teams can stop Zappe from being effective without actually have to rush him, that allows opposing defensive lines to remain fresh all game. For Zappe to be effective as a starter, he may have to be able to move out of the pocket or take deeper drops so he can see over the line.