The New England Patriots 2021-22 season probably didn’t end the way the team expected it to. After all, most teams don’t think they are going to go into a playoff matchup and allow the opposing team to score a touchdown everytime they touch the ball.
Despite the tough end to the season for the Pats, the 2021-22 season has to be considered a success for a number of reasons. They found some key players that should be cornerstones of the Patriots next title-contender, and ended up making the playoffs with a rookie quarterback under center for the entire season. One bad loss at the end of the season doesn’t erase all the progress made in the previous 17 games.
There are many reasons this team as a whole exceeded expectations on the season. For starters, their rookie quarterback, Mac Jones, didn’t play like he was a rookie for most of the season. The team also used a mammoth free agency period to bring in some established veterans to aid their cause. And, for the first time in awhile, the Patriots found some players in the draft who were able to come in and contribute right away.
All of this added up to a team that was fighting for the top seed in the AFC late in the season. While they ultimately fell apart down the stretch, there were some players who were stood out above others in helping this team improve this past season. Let’s take a look at three Patriots players that exceeded expectations this past season, starting with the 15th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
New England Patriots player who exceeded expectations No. 3: Mac Jones
Heading into the season, nobody really knew what to expect from Mac Jones. He beat out the assumed starter, Cam Newton, in training camp despite having never played a snap of football in the NFL yet. The Patriots had a lot of talent on their roster, but with a big question mark on their roster at quarterback, nobody really knew what was in store for this team this season.
Jones proceeded to lead his team all the way to the playoffs in his first season under center, and turned the future prospects of this franchise around in a heartbeat. Where his fellow rookie quarterbacks struggled, Jones excelled. He focused on limiting his mistakes, and operated primarily in the short passing game. It wasn’t pretty at times, but it led to 10 wins and a playoff berth, so obviously something was working.
The final statline for Jones on the season isn’t anything that will jump off the page (352/521, 3801 YDS, 22 TD, 13 INT), but considering it was just his first season in the NFL, you have to be somewhat impressed. He also didn’t exactly have a fantastic cast of wide receivers around him, which is something the front office will hopefully work on fixing this offseason.
Jones seemingly hit the proverbial rookie wall after the team’s bye week in Week 14, but even then he did enough to keep his team in just about every game he played. Even with his late season struggles, he gained a ton experience playing in a close postseason race, and a playoff game in less than ideal conditions. Here’s hoping Jones never has to face another 20+ point deficit at halftime of a playoff game again.
All in all, Jones stepped up in a way most Patriots fans couldn’t have reasonably expected him to in his first season. He won 10 games in his first season, while the five other rookie quarterbacks that played this season combined to win 11. He probably didn’t end the season the way he wanted to, but with a full season under his belt and a lengthy offseason period to get better, it’s safe to expect Jones to improve in his sophomore campaign.
New England Patriots player who exceeded expectations No. 2: Kendrick Bourne
Nobody really batted an eye when the Patriots inked former San Francisco 49ers receiver Kendrick Bourne to a 3 year, $15 million deal in free agency last offseason. Bourne hadn’t managed to make much of impact during his first four seasons in San Fran, and Patriots fans were hoping the team would add a bigger name on the wide receiver market instead. Turns out, Bourne was arguably the team’s best value free agent signing from last offseason.
Heading into the season, Bourne was expected to be the team’s third wide receiver behind Nelson Agholor and Jakobi Meyers. By the season’s end, Bourne was arguably the team’s most dynamic playmaker. His performance in New England’s Wild Card loss (7 REC, 77 YDS, 2 TD) really showed how much he had grown in just one season.
Bourne formed a solid top duo with Meyers, while Agholor ended up becoming the disappointment of the group, but that’s a discussion for another time. He delivered some of the biggest plays of the season, such as his 75 yard touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys, or his magnificent 41 yard catch and run score against the Tennessee Titans. Bourne and Jones formed a pretty solid bond early on, and he became one of his top targets as the season progressed.
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Similar to Jones, Bourne’s final stats this season aren’t groundbreaking by any stretch of the imagination (55 REC, 800 YDS, 5 TD) but it’s a marked improvement from his days as a 49er, and is probably more than what anybody was expecting from him in his first season in New England.
The Patriots aerial attack could look much different next season, but considering Bourne and Jones’ rapport, Bourne should have a chance to surpass 1000 yards next season. Bourne came from out of nowhere to be the Patriots top playmaker this season, and just like Jones, it would be wise to expect him to improve his game during his second season with New England.
New England Patriots player who exceeded expectations No. 1: J.C. Jackson
It really gets overlooked because of some of the other notable storylines from this season, but J.C. Jackson wasn’t supposed to be the team’s top cornerback coming into the season. The expectation was that Stephon Gilmore would return at some point midway through the season to help reinforce the secondary. Instead, Gilmore got traded to the Carolina Panthers for next to nothing.
While the trade admittedly was horrible for New England, nobody really seemed to mind too much, because Jackson upped his game to another level this season. Jackson followed up his nine interception campaign in 2020 with eight more this season, and he did it all while matching up against the opposing team’s top wideout for the most part. Jackson turned that into his first Pro Bowl appearance and a Second Team All-Pro nod.
You may disagree with this pick, but Jackson stepped up to the plate more than any other player on this roster. Filling Gilmore’s shoes was not going to be an easy job, but Jackson played so well that most Patriots fans forgot that Gilmore was even a part of this team this season. Jackson struggled last season when he had to fill in for Gilmore, but that wasn’t the case this time around.
Opposing quarterbacks posted a 46.8 pass rating when targeting Jackson this season. Considering Jackson was targeted 106 times, that’s an absurdly low number. Jackson led the league with 23 pass deflections too, and he just always seems to have a nose for the ball.
Jackson’s true breakout season couldn’t have come at a better time, as he is now set to hit unrestricted free agency. Considering how poorly the Patriots secondary played in their most recent loss to the Bills, it’s clear they need to do whatever it takes to keep Jackson in town. Jackson replaced one of the top corners in the game without any aplomb, and now he’s going to get paid for it. Hopefully, it will be New England that ends up signing his checks.