The Patriots have selected Mac Jones as their starting quarterback, and Cam Newton has been released, according to team sources.
Jones clearly won the QB competition on the practice field and in the games, the only question was if Bill Belichick would go with the rookie right away, or delay his ascension to either placate Newton or shorten the rookie season for Jones to help him get through it physically.
Apparently, Belichick thought now was the time for Jones.
What is not immediately known is whether Newton was given the opportunity to be the backup but declined, or Belichick thought it was better to release Newton to avoid any potential issues or conflicts down the road.
Cam Newton reaction:
BSJ ANALYSIS
If you've been reading or listening to me in this space since ... well, ever, you know that I'm not surprised by this and, in fact, I'm happy about this. This was clearly what should have happened.
DRAFT
FIRST DAY OF PATRIOTS PRACTICE
PRE-CAMP PREDICTION
FIRST DAY OF TRAINING CAMP
_____________________________
I give Belichick points on this. The easy thing could have been to name Newton the starter, wait for him to fail and then go with Jones. Going with Jones clearly gives the Patriots' offense its highest ceiling and the MacBookPro supercomputer will devour all the data.
If I had to guess, I think Belichick gave Newton the option to stay but Newton didn't react well to losing the job. Both figured it was best to leave
A major winner in this is Josh McDaniels, who gets the type of QB who can actually run his offense.
Much more to come today as I hear and learn more. I will be in-studio with Felger & Mazz from 2-4 p.m.