The New England Patriots appear to be on the brink of imploding, following the reported news that coach Bill Belichick shopped quarterback Mac Jones to at least four different teams.
Back in January, when appearing on Pro Football Talk, NFL insider Chris Simms reported that Jones went behind Belichick’s back in an effort to seek outside help for the Patriots’ offensive struggles. According to Simms, that news got back to Belichick, who was obviously angered by the entire incident.
But there was always one lingering question: Who was Jones actually talking to on the other end?
Simms was back again on Monday with more to the initial story. Per Simms, Jones was speaking with Alabama coaches to see if they would help with New England’s offense.
“Of course Mac Jones must have been frustrated, and that’s what I heard,” Simms said on Pro Football Talk. “I think I said that early in the season, that he had called Alabama and certain coaches saying, ‘Hey, can you give some ideas to our coaches.’ Well, I mean, come on. All of us who pay attention to football—how do you think that’s going to go over with New England people if they heard that was happening, right?
“…I’m sure he was frustrated, but I don’t know if calling Alabama, where the head coach is an ex-assistant of your head coach—it’s going to get back. That’s where he went wrong.”
Jones’ frustrations with the Patriots’ offense are understandable considering he was stuck with a defensive coach, Matt Patricia, as his offensive coordinator. The offensive line struggled throughout the season, and as usual, the Patriots were lacking at the receiver position.
One of the most buttoned-up franchises in NFL history suddenly looked like a complete disaster.
But on the flipside, it had to be upsetting and downright embarrassing for Belichick to find out his quarterback went behind his back for help from a college football team.
Belichick and Alabama coach Nick Saban are very close, and it’s easy to see how word would get back in a hurry. That action might have drawn a line in the sand where there’s no coming back for this soured coach-quarterback relationship.
For the Patriots’ sake, let’s hope that’s not the case.
