Mac Jones’ days with the New England Patriots appear to be numbered.
The chance that Jones might get a fresh start under new Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo and offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt appears to be minimal, as the team is fielding offers from other front offices about the 2021 first-round pick and is open to moving him, according to NFL Media.
The Patriots also reportedly had trade discussions about Jones last season, though that was when Bill Belichick was still running the show as head coach and general manager. Belichick mutually parted ways with the Patriots after a 2023 season in which the team sunk to 4-13. Jones was benched multiple times during the season amid reported friction between him and Belichick.
New England holds the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, which is considered to have a loaded quarterback class led by prospects Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, Jayden Daniels and J.J. McCarthy. The team also has more than $100 million in cap space and has been linked to veteran free-agent quarterbacks such as Baker Mayfield, who led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the playoffs last season after taking over for Patriots legend Tom Brady at quarterback.
However, The Athletic also recently reported that top Patriots executive Eliot Wolf wants to “stockpile draft picks,” meaning a trade down with another team that might need a quarterback could happen.
Jones reached the Pro Bowl in his rookie year, passing for 3,801 yards and 22 touchdowns with a 67.6% completion rate, leading the Patriots back to the playoffs for the first time since Brady departed for Tampa Bay after the 2019 season. However, he regressed dramatically after offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels left to become the Las Vegas Raiders head coach.
Belichick controversially brought back assistants Matt Patricia and Joe Judge — who had limited offensive backgrounds — to run the Patriots’ offense, only to see it become one of the worst in the league, with Jones briefly embroiled in a quarterback controversy with then-rookie Bailey Zappe. Jones then declined further in 2023, going 2-9 in his starts with a 64.9% completion rate, 2,120 yards, 10 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in just 345 pass attempts, nearly 180 fewer than he had in 2021.
Despite Jones’ struggles, Colin Cowherd believes the Patriots should give the quarterback one more chance in 2024.
“This is not the [Los Angeles] Chargers with [Jim] Harbaugh,” Cowherd said on “The Herd” this week. “It’s a first-time NFL coach with [no] offensive weapons of note. Slowest receiving corps in the league by a mile. They do not have elite tight ends, receivers or backs. So I have no problem trading down once or twice — getting a tight end, getting a receiver, getting a left tackle, getting a more sustainable long-term running back — I have no problem with that. And giving Mac Jones, with a competent offensive coordinator, Alex Van Pelt … giving him a year.”
Jones is expected to be yet another name in a crowded veteran quarterback market this offseason. Kirk Cousins is also an unrestricted free agent in addition to Mayfield, and the Chicago Bears appear likely to trade Justin Fields and replace him with one of the aforementioned quarterback prospects as they hold the No. 1 overall pick in April’s draft. It’s unlikely Jones would find a clear starting opportunity somewhere else in the NFL, which means the Patriots may not be able to recoup much in the way of draft picks for trading him.
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