3 Reasons Why Mac Jones Should Be Benched in Week 6

New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones is coming off of two absolutely disastrous performances. Unsurprisingly, with their QB playing like one of the worst signal-callers in the league, the team has gotten blown out in both contests.

Jones' struggles are so bad right now that New England must consider benching him in Week 6. In fact, there's a few reasons why sidelining him makes a ton of sense right now.

Why Mac Jones Should Be Benched in Week 6

1. To Help the Offense

Simply put, Jones isn't playing like a competent quarterback right now, and that severely hamstrings this already-underhwleming offense.

Despite getting into pass-heavy game scripts that should allow for some fireworks, Jones has mostly been a dud in 2023. Outside of Week 1, Jones hasn't posted more than 231 yards in a game all season, including two straight outings with 150 or fewer.

This unit continues to start games off incredibly slow, which puts the entire team in an early hole. That then neutralizes the run game -- New England's one skill position of strength -- and eliminates a key way for the offense to pick up yards. As a result, Rhamondre Stevenson and Ezekiel Elliott have failed to produce much with defenses not having to respect the passing game.

Not only does Jones' lack of production actively hurt the offense, but his decision-making as well. He's thrown a league-leading six interceptions in just five games (despite being benched before two contests were even over) and lost another two fumbles as well. These turnovers are absolute momentum-killers for this unit, which will continue to disappoint if any rhythm can't be established.

The numbers with Jones under center speak for themselves. He clearly isn't helping produce anything competitive on the field right now, which necessitates a change.

2. To Get a Look at the Other QB Options

Bill Belichick has fiddled with his quarterback depth since the preseason ended, signaling some lacking confidence in Jones. After all, the team wouldn't be concerned with bringing in new guys every few weeks if they were particularly set at the postion.

Well, now is the time for Belichick to see what toys he's stashed away. New England currently has three non-Jones QBs who must get a look with the starter's current struggles.

Bailey Zappe's the obvious choice to take over under center as the Pats' primary backup. He did help New England pick up wins in both of his starts last season, which included an impressive 309-yard, 2-TD outing in Week 6 against the Cleveland Browns.

That being said, Zappe didn't do enough to ever take the role from Jones last year. Then he struggled this preseason, which made the team comfortable enough to cut him and risk losing the former fourth-round pick on waivers. He also hasn't done much (7 completions for 79 yards in two games) when playing in relief of Jones in 2023, though it's hard to expect much from him in the offense's current state.

Will Grier and Malik Cunningham, meanwhile, provide possible wild cards. Grier was a valued member of the Dallas Cowboys' QB room over the last two years, though he never actually suited up in any games for the team. He did ball out in the preseason finale though, flashing his upside with four total touchdowns (2 rushing, 2 passing) and 358 combined yards (305 passing, 53 rushing).

Speaking of preseason performers, Cunningham turned heads with his play for New England. The dual threat out of Louisville showed his potential when he led the Pats on a 14-play, 75-yard touchdown drive thanks to his arm (3/4 for 19 yards) and legs (5 rushes for 34 yards and 1 TD) against the Houston Texans.

Jones and Zappe are both known (and underwhelming) commodities at this point. While Belichick isn't one to throw caution to the wind, the results may surprise him if lets Grier or Cunningham try to make some plays.

3. To Send the Whole Team a Message

Having a QB who's not pulling his weight doesn't just impact the offense, but the entire team.

When the quarterback can't lead his unit on actual drives, that puts the defense on the field for more than it should be. That causes the other side of the ball to get gassed, and even a talented unit will ultimately go on to make mistakes, which is exactly what's happened to New England.

Jones can't put together multiple drives, and he's gifting opponents points with stupid mistakes. Having that kind of pure liability at the sport's most important position might be hard for his teammates to deal with. After all, Jones is supposed to be a leader as a QB, not a deterrent to winning football.

Belichick is at legitimate risk of losing the locker room if he continues to trot Jones out. There's no logical reason to keep running it back with him when he's playing like this. Putting him on the bench for his play sends the rest of the team a message that underperformers won't be tolerated.

Otherwise, we could see players start to check out. If the biggest culprit goes unpunished, that sets the stage for even more people start to slack on the job.

Belichick can't afford that with his team 1-4 and his seat starting to look incredibly warm. Benching Jones is the least he can do to make sure a locker room mutiny doesn't break out.

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