Lazar: Pats call different plays for Mac than Zappe

[BaconGrundleCandy]

Alabama is a huge RPO offense. Yet they do not run it here at all with him. Jones' senior year, 19% of Jones' passing plays were RPO plays. And he had great success in it. From Lazar:

Going back to his Alabama days, Jones had the third-highest rate of his passes come off RPO schemes in the 2021 quarterback class (19%). Furthermore, in his final season with the Crimson Tide, Jones lit up defenses with these schemes: 73-of-78, 890 yards, ten touchdowns, and zero interceptions for a near-perfect passer rating of 153.8.

Are RPOs Coming to the Patriots Offense in Mac Jones's Second Season?

The Patriots quarterback explained why he likes run-pass options on Wednesday.

www.patriots.com

This offense is not tailored for Jones. Not at all. Jones has been against the offense from day one.

And Jones did do a lot of play action in college. I don't get where you have him almost exclusively in the gun at Alabama:

A whopping 58% of Jones’ dropbacks were RPOs, screens, or play action passes. That was the third-highest rate among eligible Power 5 quarterbacks (minimum 100 attempts) and can make evaluating Jones difficult, regardless of whether you choose to do so statistically or traditionally.

The not-so-curious case of Mac Jones

A careful examination of Jones' strengths and weaknesses.

www.sportsinfosolutions.com

Some of the assistance Jones got from the offense shows up in this section, as well. Jones’ play-action / RPO rate of 53.03% is astronomically high. Even if we assume the NFL’s play-action / RPO rate is increasing, over 50% is not a realistic number in the pros. From 2019 and on, the only other QBs to clear the 45%-plus mark in this area are Drew Lock, Kyler Murray, and Tua Tagovailoa. That’s not the worst company, honestly, but it’s still worth recognizing much of Jones’ production came easier than other QBs, which is especially concerning when Jones does not have the playmaking element those other QBs had/have.

Quantifying Quarterbacks: Mac Jones | QB KlassRoom

In college, Jones was a phenomenal play action and RPO QB. So far the Patriots have done little to exploit that skill set of his. In fact, I have been calling for this since last year.

This sounds really familiar. Almost like I've been saying this since before the draft. Having an honest conversation about Mac has been tough. I'm glad people are finally coming along. Should have been listening but some people like the long way.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Jones has been against the offense from day one.

I mean, if we really think this is the case, no mystery the results we are getting with him this season.

Somebody tell Mac he's not at 'Bama, he's not in college, and the big swinging um thing, metaphorically speaking, is BB, not a quarterback from last year's draft. He doesn't get to be "against the offense." What a stupid sentiment for him to harbor. It's like running for office and being against government.

 

[TomPatriot]

This sounds really familiar. Almost like I've been saying this since before the draft. Having an honest conversation about Mac has been tough. I'm glad people are finally coming along. Should have been listening but some people like the long way.

Does that include a few coaches?

 

[Triumph]

The Playcalling is not the issue.

Execution is.

 

[venecol]

Below are the run/pass attempts for each week.

WK 1: Mac vs MIA
Runs 22
Pass 30 (58%)
WK 2: Mac vs PIT
Runs 31
Pass 35 (53%)
WK 3: Mac vs BAL
Runs 22
Pass 30 (58%)
WK 4: Hoyer/Zappe vs GB
Runs 33
Pass 21 (39%)
WK 5: Zappe vs DET
Runs 35
Pass 21 (38%)
WK 6: Zappe vs CLE
Runs 29
Pass 34 (54%)
WK 7: Mac/Zappe vs CHI
Runs 19
Pass 28 (60%)

Looking at first 3 weeks, OC is trying to have 58% passing plays with 2nd year starting QB.

Wk 4, Hoyer gets injured & you bring a rookie off the bench, so they dial way down the passing plays. Wk 5 is more of the same, despite them having the lead from start to finish. Wk 6, they cut the rookie loose, getting up to 54% passing plays. Wk 7 is another 2 QB game, yet they still cut Zappe loose, throwing for a high 60% of the plays.

This isn't any more complicated than having a rookie coming off the bench, and having never taken an NFL snap, the coaches getting him used to the playbook in real action, an adjusting as he progresses.

At this point:
Mac has 103 attempts
Zappe has 92 attempts

Yet:
Mac has 10 PA, 1 RPO, 13 deep passes.
Zappe has 20 PA, 5 RPO, 14 deep passes.

I don't think the issue is that Zappe is getting easy, dumbed down plays, but that it's shocking how fast he's learned all of the plays (incl. Mac's) and how he has excelled at them.

 

[venecol]

Can you provide one of the reports that says Jones "hates" the new offense?

I'll try my hand at it:
-
“I think we laid our foundation of what we want to do and what the coaches want to do. We’ve definitely bought into that,” Jones said. “There’s things that I’ve done in the past. There are things that I like, and we’re trying to incorporate them more. Or things that coach (Bill) Belichick sees on film and he’s like, ‘hey what do you think about this?’ So it’s very fluid and for them to be able to take some of our thoughts is really important.

“I think the really good offenses in the NFL, you can tell that the play-callers and the quarterback are on the same page. So I think we’re getting there and that’s the progress we need, and I’ve been really pleased with that.”
-

Guregian: Patriots QB Mac Jones sounds at peace with new offense

Finally, Mac Jones sees the Patriots offense moving in the right direction.

www.bostonherald.com

You know that you can run play action from the gun right? It’s less effective than play action under center. That’s why college team run RPO’s to help play action from the gun.

In the same article you posted, Evan wrote that Mac has been under center only 11 plays during his entire Alabama career.

"Matty P. calls the same game for both of us," Zappe responded. "Speaking for me, I always tell Matty P. (to) call whatever he wants and I’ll try to make it work for him. So, that's kind of the mindset we go into every game. Whether it's me or Mac playing, I think it's the same game plan no matter what."

Bailey Zappe's comment about Patriots' play-calling is telling

Bailey Zappe appears to have a very different philosophy than Mac Jones when it comes to executing Matt Patricia’s plays in the Patriots’ offense.

www.nbcsports.com

Lol, you guys checkmating and b*tch slapping this fool is comedy gold.

 

[venecol]

Sounds like Mac's been playing hero ball. Wants to be like Mahomes.

 

[venecol]

Hmm, clearly Patricia hates Mac.

Patricia also spoke glowingly of the relationship he and Jones have in general.

“He’s great. He’s a guy that has great ideas and thoughts and loves the game,” Patricia said. “Takes the coaching. Loves to talk football... I think he’s got a great football mind.”

 

[venecol]

Here's a pic of the real Rob0 out on the twitter-sphere. If not, he sure sounds a lot like his wild ass conspiracy theories.

 

[Wozzy]

The Pats played three of the toughest defensive fronts in the league to start this season, all three with questionable defensive backfields... and we're wondering now why they passed more and used more shotgun?

Let me ask my twelve year old nephew in the middle of a game of Madden to explain it to you.

 

[Ross12]

Sounds like Mac's been playing hero ball. Wants to be like Mahomes.

If true, that is concerning…

 

[Wozzy]

From Mike Reis’s quick hits today regarding different plays:

“I think it’s more based on our game plans for those weeks,” Patricia said. “Most of our stuff is built universally for all the quarterbacks and what we think is best for that game, more so than the particular quarterback.”

It was the opposing teams personnel that determined the plan of offensive attack, not the QB in the game.

Zappe took the checkdowns and easy yards, Mac didn’t. The term “game manager” has a bad connotation around here, when it’s actually a very good thing. We need someone to manage the game and protect the ball… much more than we need a hero.

 

[Dingleberry]

And when Zappe did make deep throws, he has been generally accurate. Not INT balls.

Good placement on the loger passes, despite a couple pink hats here claiming the TD pass to Jakobi was inaccurate.

 

[1960Pats]

Where has it been reported that they offensive direction was shaped by Jones' preferences? It is clear from training camp that Jones doesn't like the offensive scheme. There have been a number of occasions that he has let things slip that shows his disdain for it.

In fact, there are rumors that there is a rift between Jones and Patricia and Judge because Jones kept asking why they are doing this offense because he doesn't get the strategy of it.

Theirs Not to Reason Why, Theirs But to Do and Die.

 

[BillyD90123]

After Further Review: How do the Patriots Get Their QB Situation Back on Track, Fix Issues vs. Mobile QBs

How did the Patriots get here with quarterback Mac Jones?

www.patriots.com

Of course they call different plays for Zappe. Being a QB in the NFL is hard. Hey, Brady sat a year before he was thrown in a game. Zappe was given 3 games on the sideline before he was called on.

 

[venecol]

 

[1960Pats]

This is obviously not the truth because all you need to do is look at the disparity in the number of play action calls between the two. I don't care how each QB executes the play, all you need to do is look at the fact that one QB lines up under center and drops back into play action close to 40% of the passes and the other does it about 10% of the time to know they are calling plays differently for each QB.

Here we are almost halfway through the season and some fans are still confused over which QB's getting which plays and/or who's calling those plays. And now we're fighting over young QBs who haven't really been put in a good position.

I honestly don't care which one of those kids ends up a pro QB, but at least one of them better.

 

[venecol]

I like this kid. True Patriot spirit.

Zappe gave a notable answer when asked if offensive play-caller Matt Patricia calls different plays for him and Jones depending on who's under center.

"Matty P. calls the same game for both of us," Zappe responded. "Speaking for me, I always tell Matty P. (to) call whatever he wants and I’ll try to make it work for him. So, that's kind of the mindset we go into every game. Whether it's me or Mac playing, I think it's the same game plan no matter what."

 

[Ross12]

I like this kid. True Patriot spirit.

Zappe gave a notable answer when asked if offensive play-caller Matt Patricia calls different plays for him and Jones depending on who's under center.

"Matty P. calls the same game for both of us," Zappe responded. "Speaking for me, I always tell Matty P. (to) call whatever he wants and I’ll try to make it work for him. So, that's kind of the mindset we go into every game. Whether it's me or Mac playing, I think it's the same game plan no matter what."

"Speaking for me, I always tell Matty P. (to) call whatever he wants and I’ll try to make it work for him." - Patricia probably wets himself over this one

 

[Rob0729]

Here we are almost halfway through the season and some fans are still confused over which QB's getting which plays and/or who's calling those plays. And now we're fighting over young QBs who haven't really been put in a good position.

I honestly don't care which one of those kids ends up a pro QB, but at least one of them better.

I don't care which one either. I am and always will be a laundry guy. I just believe that Jones is more likely to have the higher ceiling and I think Patricia and Judge are ruining the guy.

I take from Belichick play Jones today that he agrees with me that Jones has the higher ceiling. And if he agrees, it is Patricia's job to put Jones in the best place to succeed. I am just not feeling that he is. You would think that Jones' first game back after being out for three weeks with a gimpy ankle that the first pass on second and ten would be a 30 yard pass down the field and they wouldn't be quick passes to allow Jones to get into a rhythm before they opened up the offense. That is my biggest point.

I think this is where the Patriots are missing McDaniels the most. McDaniels was great with not only develop great gameplans to exploit the weaknesses of the opposing defenses, but also tailor the offense to suit the strengths of the talent he has. I don't think Patricia has the latter especially with Jones under center.