Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio was brainstorming names to watch in the Las Vegas Raiders’ search for their next quarterback, and New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones was floated out there as a suggestion.
It would make sense if the Patriots were looking to move Jones. He clearly has a connection with Raiders coach Josh McDaniels, who served as his offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in his rookie season with the Patriots.
The Raiders would probably love to have the former first-round draft pick as their new leading man under center.
Florio wrote:
“Or how about Mac Jones? After the season ended, Patriots coach Bill Belichick was asked whether Jones will be the team’s starter in 2023. Belichick didn’t answer the question, saying instead that Jones has proved he can play in this league. Perhaps a trade could happen, pairing Jones with the former Patriots offensive coordinator who helped Jones have a solid rookie season.”
That all sounds good, but how would it benefit the Patriots?
This would all have to assume that New England is all-in on backup Bailey Zappe being the guy, or they’d have to be eyeing a suitable replacement in the 2023 NFL draft.
Jones was a Pro Bowler as a rookie, when McDaniels was overseeing the offense, but things obviously took a turn for the worst when the offensive play-calling reins were handed over to Matt Patricia. If the Patriots trade him now, they’d miss out on seeing his potential with an experienced play-caller like Bill O’Brien taking over the offense.
The team invested too much in Jones to just give up on him after two seasons, right?
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