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New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones didn’t hesitate to go after himself for what he felt was an “embarrassing” performance in the team’s regular-season finale.
The quarterback continued to be his own harshest critic following the team’s 33-24 loss to the Miami Dolphins. Jones was 20 of 30 for 261 yards with one touchdown and one interception. The interception, a pick-six, came on his first throw of the game. He also fumbled the football in the red zone at the end of the third quarter.
“I think we just need to execute better and that starts with me. Just in practice, in the game, you’ve got to go out there and do much better than I did. It’s super embarrassing honestly — just from my point — just how I played,” Jones told reporters in Miami during a postgame press conference. “It wasn’t good enough. I can be better. It starts with me. And I’m the quarterback. That’s my job is to make people around me have success and it starts with me. We’ll get it fixed.”
His pass-catchers made a string of sensational plays in the second half, with both Jakobi Meyers and Hunter Henry logging diving receptions. Meyers also won a 39-yard jump-ball reception. They helped their quarterback work the ball downfield, even on an off day.
“We’ve got to put a better product out there, especially to win big games and the team we played tonight was the better team,” Jones said. “I think, at the same time, you can’t feel sorry for yourself. You’ve got to move on and learn from your mistakes and take the positives and then look at the negatives, too. You can’t just brush the negatives under the rug.”
The truth is that their loss may not have had a massive impact on their playoff standing. They clinched a playoff berth last week. They will be in the postseason to face either the Buffalo Bills or the Cincinnati Bengals on the road.
“You’ve got to watch the film and realize how embarrassing it is to play that way,” Jones said. “At the same time, we’ve got a great opportunity next week and that’s all you can ask for.”
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