There is enough blame to go around for the current state of the New England Patriots, but when it comes to the failed development of quarterback Mac Jones, former Patriots running back Damien Harris laid the blame at the feet of coach Bill Belichick.
Jones was a rookie Pro Bowler under previous Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. However, once McDaniels left for the head coaching job with the Las Vegas Raiders, Jones and the entire offense went off a cliff.
Belichick never hired a suitable replacement. Instead, he simply chose to lean on longtime disciples Matt Patricia and Joe Judge.
In one of the biggest head-scratching moves of the Belichick era, Patricia was handed the reins as the new offensive play-caller, despite being a defensive coach. And Judge, who was a special teams coach, was suddenly morphed into the Patriots new quarterbacks coach.
“What happened to Mac Jones in New England was not because of Mac Jones,” said Harris, when appearing on “The Athletic Football Show.” “What happened in New England to Mac Jones was because of the fact you took away an offensive coordinator, who coached him to be a Pro-Bowler and almost coached us to winning our division with a rookie quarterback in his first year.
“And then whenever Josh McDaniels left, then you take Matt Patricia, who’s coached defense his entire life, Joe Judge, who’s been a special teams coach, coached receivers at some point, and then you just throw them in there and say, ‘Hey, coach this kid up. He’s a first round pick, but as long as you teach him what I say, everything is gonna be fine.’ And the [expletive] wasn’t fine.”
Jones was benched multiple times for Bailey Zappe at quarterback. The Patriots attempted to save face by hiring Bill O’Brien in 2023, but by that time, the damage had already been done.
The former first-round pick’s confidence had been shaken beyond recognition. It didn’t help matters that the offensive line was still in shambles, and the receiving corps was one of the worst in the league. Few quarterbacks, if any, could have been successful in the situation Jones faced in New England.
He finished his final year with the team with 2,120 passing yards, 10 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
“Mac Jones is in Jacksonville. They’re on to Drake Maye. It’s like the breath of Mac Jones in New England—it came and went,” said Harris. “It shouldn’t have the way that it went, and the only reason that it did was because Bill Belichick, being stuck in his ways, was very much so, ‘As long as I am here. As long as I am, along with Robert Kraft, the top dog at this organization, no matter who, no matter where, what position, where they coach, whatever—we will have success.'”
The success never came for the Patriots. Quite the contrary, Belichick’s questionable decisions in the end created the path for his own exit from New England.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Belichick parted ways after 24 years together, following a 4-13 finish to the 2023 season. The team moved to hire Jerod Mayo as the new head coach and Eliot Wolf as the top personnel executive.
In a way, that ugly record helped the new regime by netting them the No. 3 overall pick of the 2024 NFL draft, where they selected quarterback Drake Maye.
A final gift from the man that led them to six Super Bowls.
