New England Patriots open to trading Mac Jones per NFL Network Insider

Mac Jones may be a name to watch in trade rumors in the coming weeks

Former Alabama quarterback [autotag]Mac Jones[/autotag] was given the impossible task of replacing the legendary [autotag]Tom Brady[/autotag] in New England after being selected No. 15 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft. Things appeared to be working as Jones was named as Pro Bowler for the 2021 season and posted a 10-7 record while completing 67.6% of his passes for 3,801 yards and 22 touchdowns to 13 interceptions.

Unfortunately, the next two seasons have not quite gone according to plan in Foxborough as the team has gone 12-22 over that span and fired long-time head coach Bill Belichick. As the quarterback, most of the blame has fallen on the shoulders of Jones, despite the fact they have had one of the poorer rosters in the league for a few years now. In fact, it was part of the reason Brady left the Patriots in the first place.

Jones has been in and out of the lineup for the past season or two in favor of backup Bailey Zappe and it is getting to a point where both sides could probably use fresh starts. There have been stories of Jones getting into arguments with players and coaches, while the team has also not done him any favors. Now, with a new coach in town Jerod Mayo, NFL Insider Ian Rapoport is reporting that both sides are trending in the direction of a fresh start.

There are no shortage of teams in the NFL who could use a quarterback right now and I believe there is still a lot to like about Jones. He is still on a rookie contract, you wouldn’t have trade much for him and he still has the upside of a first round pick.

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Longtime ESPN NFL Insider John Clayton dies at 67 years old leaving sports fans and colleagues everywhere in mourning

Rest in peace, John Clayton.

So many sports fans around the world grew up watching ESPN. For so many of us — including myself — it was their first introduction to the sports world at large.

That meant so many of us got to see John Clayton at work. For NFL fans, he was an absolute staple when it came to the coverage of the league.

Looking for free agency or trade news? Better catch that John Clayton segment. He was always going to give you the skinny on the latest from around the league. In my household and so many others, John Clayton was a legend.

We lost that legend on Friday.

Clayton died from what was described as a “brief illness” by his colleague, Chris Mortensen.

ESPN shared the news, too.

Then the tributes started pouring in from friends, colleagues and fans from around the sports world.