Mac Jones was not the most prolific quarterback in 2021 during his rookie season. His year was, in fact, underwhelming when looking at his counting stats: 3,801 passing yards, 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions in 17 starts.
Had he not won 10 games, there might even be room for concern. But Jones led the team to the playoffs with a steady and conservative approach as a passer. He may not have the same luxury this year. With the Patriots defense looking less experienced and less talented, New England will need Jones to do more.
So that begs the question: How much more can the Patriots ask of Jones in 2022?
His efficiency was impressive, as noted by the graphic above with a 67.6 completion percentage (8th in the NFL) while putting up 7.3 yards per attempt (14th) in the NFL. The trick with getting more out of Jones will be increasing his number of passes attempted (slightly) while seeing a significant uptick in his yards per attempt. It wouldn’t hurt to see him score a few more passing touchdowns, too.
The team has made personnel moves with the intention of attacking the deep portion of the field — and the end zone. They retained tackle Trent Brown to help protect Jones from EDGE pressure. And while the Patriots lost two starting tackles, they have two starting-caliber replacements: Cole Strange (a 2022 first-round pick) and Michael Onwenu (who started the season at guard in 2021). New England also added a pair of bigger receivers in DeVante Adams and Tyquan Thornton, a 2022 second-round pick with blazing speed.
Every team goes the way of its quarterback. But last year, the Patriots were built to take the pressure off Jones. That’s starting to change in 2022. The offense is bringing him clearer into focus. New England is getting ready to ask more of Jones and so its preparing to support him through that growth process.
