Did Mac Jones Just Throw His Last Pass for the Patriots?
By Tyler Maher
After 10 weeks of terrible play and costly mistakes, Mac Jones may finally be done with the New England Patriots.
His latest failure came in Week 10 against the Indianapolis Colts in Germany. With the Patriots trailing 10-6 in the fourth quarter, Jones was set up in the red zone with a chance to throw the go-ahead touchdown with a little over 4 minutes remaining.
Instead, he did this, underthrowing a wide-open receiver in the end zone by 5 yards and getting picked off for a backbreaking interception.
That's a throw that every NFL quarterback should be able to make, but Jones couldn't do it. Instead, it resulted in his NFL-leading 10th interception.
Mac Jones Benching
Bill Belichick has apparently seen enough. When New England got the ball back with the score still 10-6, Belichick didn't give Jones a chance to redeem himself. Instead, he benched Jones in favor of Bailey Zappe, who promptly threw his own game-sealing interception into triple coverage to doom the Patriots once more.
With New England now 2-8 and heading into its bye week, it's fair to wonder if Jones will still be the starting quarterback (or play at all) when the team returns to action in Week 12 against the New York Giants. Not only does he lead the NFL in interceptions, but he also took a season-high 5 sacks on Sunday. The Patriots have no failed to score an offensive touchdown in three of Jones' 10 starts this year, which is simply unacceptable.
Offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien was shown ripping into Jones on the sideline after his interception, and Jones could only hang his head in shame. The former first-round pick appears broken beyond repair at this point.
With nothing left to play for this year except better draft positioning for 2024, New England needs to go in a new direction at quarterback. Whether that's Zappe, Will Grier or Malik Cunningham, a drastic change if needed. Because if Jones isn't the guy you want under center with the game on the line, then you need to find someone who is.
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