There’s no question that the alarming amount of turnovers committed by New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones this season are troubling. He has thrown five interceptions in just three games, including three in the team’s 37-26 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 3.
It’s no secret that turning the football over is the quickest way for a player to find themselves on the bench. And while no other quarterback on the Patriots’ roster is necessarily threatening Jones for the starting job, it doesn’t mean coach Bill Belichick wouldn’t give someone else a chance if his second-year quarterback keeps playing hot potato with the ball.
“New England is not doing anything they stand for,” former Patriots coaching assistant Michael Lombardi said on “The GM Shuffle” podcast, via ESPN’s Mike Reiss. “They want to avoid losing before they win. As much as I like Mac Jones, I thought Mac Jones would protect the ball and play smarter than he’s played. Now he’s hurt with the high ankle [sprain]. To me, he was in danger of either changing what he did, or he is going to lose his job. You’re not going to play in the NFL if you keep turning the ball over the way he was.”
Patriots insight from @mlombardiNFL on “GM Shuffle” podcast.
“I’ve never seen a New England team like this. It’s so anti-Belichick,” he says.
Podcast link: https://t.co/21kLlXvYAe. pic.twitter.com/J6H5LHyRJj
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) September 27, 2022
The Patriots have a long history of being the team that doesn’t make the costly mistakes. Even when their roster wasn’t necessarily the best, they still weren’t a team that was going to beat themselves on the field.
They’re only three games into the season, and so far, they look like the complete opposite.
Jones is currently seeking a second opinion on his ankle injury in hopes of avoiding surgery. It isn’t time to hit the panic button just yet on his future in New England, but as Lombardi pointed out, it won’t be long if things keep heading in the same direction.
Julian Edelman recently alluded to the same point in a post on Twitter.
Ball security is job security
— Julian Edelman (@Edelman11) September 25, 2022
While the injury saga surrounding Jones continues, the Patriots are expected to turn the page with backup Brian Hoyer as their quarterback with a daunting task ahead of trying to knock off Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.
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