EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The clock was running, some 4 1/2 minutes remaining in the first half of Sunday’s New England Patriots–New York Giants meet-up at MetLife Stadium.
Up to this point, the game was as drab and listless as the gray skies overhead, neither team having scored.
The Patriots had the ball, third-and-4 at the New York 23.
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Patriots quarterback Mac Jones dropped back to pass.
OK, now stop the clock for a moment.
Stop everything.
And now try to imagine a scenario in which Jones finds an open man who wraps his mitts around a crisp pass and takes it into the end zone. Try to see it as the pass that lifts the spirits of a down-in-the-dumps quarterback, a pass that gives New England a lead and, who knows, maybe even a victory. And for Jones, an opportunity to walk into a postgame media availability and talk about things that went right, not things that went haywire.
But you know it didn’t turn out that way. Jones was intercepted at the 19-yard line by Giants linebacker Bobby Okereke, who lumbered to the New England 26 for a gain of 55 yards. On the ensuing drive, Giants quarterback Tommy DeVito connected with Isaiah Hodgins on a 12-yard completion for what would be the only touchdown of the day in the Giants’ 10-7 victory.
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You also know Jones was benched in the second half, with Bailey Zappe taking over. Nothing much good happened for the Pats from then on, including Chad Ryland’s missed 35-yard field goal attempt with six seconds remaining that would have sent the game to overtime.
Got all that? The setup is important in our latest discussion about Jones, the man who starts games at quarterback for the Patriots but lately hasn’t been finishing them. We can’t take a guided tour inside Jones’ head to determine how much pressure he’s been under this season, but we can all agree (I think?) that Patriots coach Bill Belichick’s weeklong who’s-going-to-be-the-starting-quarterback drama was a needless and tired clown show that didn’t serve the best interests of the team.
And that’s what Belichick has been saying for more than two decades, right? We did what we thought was best for the team.
Does anybody out there believe Belichick did what was best for the team last week?
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This isn’t to defend Jones. He was again, shall we say, out of sorts. He seemed to aim some on-field exasperation at tight end Mike Gesicki after an incomplete pass attempt. He threw two interceptions and was 12-for-21 for 89 yards before Zappe came in from the bullpen.
But it wasn’t unfair to ask Jones after the game whether the Patriots put him in the best position to succeed.
And he was, indeed, asked that question.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s my job to go out there and play well regardless of the circumstance,” Jones said. “So there are no excuses not to. I had a few bad throws and just wasn’t on the same page with the offense today. So, I’ve got to do a better job creating that standard and making sure we communicate.”
Patriots quarterback Mac Jones grabs a bad snap in the first quarter as Giants linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux closes in. (Robert Deutsch / USA Today)Jones chose to deflect, to pivot, rather than answer the question. We all understand the need for locker room decorum; in that spirit, then, Jones can be excused for this postgame dance.
Nevertheless, he was asked the same question a second time.
“Like I said, it’s my job to go out there and play well,” Jones replied. “I’m an NFL quarterback, and I need to do a better job of that. So, it is what it is.”
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As we evaluate the week-to-week Mac Jones, as we grade his performances and hold ongoing referendums as to his fitness to be an NFL quarterback, it has become too easy to fall into the trap of all-or-nothingness. As in, it’s all Jones’ fault or it’s not all Jones’ fault. But not everything is an internet poll in which one box or the other must be checked.
So let’s toss out the polls and the boxes and agree that two things can be true at once. Has Jones been a terrible disappointment this season? Of course he has.
But, and here comes that question again, have the Patriots put Jones in the best position to succeed?
Of course not. The week leading up to this trip to the Meadowlands was a master class in how to screw with your quarterback’s head. Things have gotten so shockingly off the rails with the Patriots that players are twisting themselves in knots to avoid answering basic questions, such as when Zappe was asked after Sunday’s game when he learned Jones would be starting against the Giants.
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“I think that’s a private conversation that we have during the week,” Zappe said. “I think that’s a question for coach Belichick — he made the decision — but I’ll keep that between us and the coaches.”
Good heavens. These guys are afraid to talk about when they found out who was going to start a game that’s already been played.
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If only Jones had connected with Pop Douglas, his intended target, on that drive late in the second quarter. On a day when both teams’ offenses were wandering aimlessly from side to side, that one pass, if successful, might have changed the entire narrative. But Jones screwed up, yet again, and, well, there you are. It’s all on him.
Except it isn’t.
Ask yourself if you believe Jones was put in the best position to succeed. Call now. Lines are open.
(Top photo: Al Bello / Getty Images)
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