As his career progressed, Tom Brady was fond of telling us he had the answers to the test. His point was that he had played so much football, and had been in so many situations, that no matter what was thrown at him - blitzes, coverages, different fronts - he had seen and dealt with all of it, usually quite successfully. That gave Brady and, in turn, the Patriots extreme confidence that they could solve whatever problems were presented.
Fast forward to Mac Jones and the 2023-24 Patriots’ offense. No, I’m not daring to compare Jones to Brady. I’m not on drugs. But what has been evident as training camp and the preseason have progressed, is that Bill O’Brien’s offense is giving his quarterback far more answers to the test, far more easy buttons to push, than he had at any time last season.
Thus, when people point out Mac’s inability to handle pressure and blitzes last season - he was at or near the bottom of the league in all those stats - I want to redirect you to what it looked like in his rookie season under Josh McDaniels when he was in the upper half of the league. Imagine that? A competent playcaller led to competent quarterback play.
As a rookie in 2021, Jones was 14th in passer rating when under pressure (74.2; out of 40 qualifiers) - ahead of Josh Allen (14th), Patrick Mahomes (16th), Tom Brady (18th) and Aaron Rodgers (19th), according to PFF. Jones had the 9th-lowest turnover-worthy-play percentage when under pressure (3.5). he was ahead of Brady (10th), Rodgers (13th), Joe Burrow (16th) and Josh Allen (23rd).
Last season under Matt Patricia, Jones plummeted to 38th (out of 40 qualifiers) in the league in passer rating under pressure at 35.1 — ahead of only Kyler Murray and Zach Wilson. Jones' turnover-worth-play-percentage under pressure ranked 35th (7.0).
Jones dropped back 12 times on Saturday night in Green Bay, was pressured five times, and sacked twice. His passer rating vs. pressure was 118.8 - 7th-best in the NFL this preseason. Jones had zero turnover-worthy plays.
Not a large sample size by any stretch of the imagination, however, it mirrored exactly what we’ve seen in camp. There were options in the flat, there were options underneath and there was actual success - holy crap - to be found. It would have been even better had the offensive line been able to protect, but that’s been one of the recurring themes of this summer.
Again, let me take you back to the dark days of 2022, when Matt Patricia’s offense, with so many cooks in the kitchen, thought the best thing to do against the blitz was to throw 50/50 balls 15, 20, and 30 yards down the field. Even 8-year-olds playing Madden know that’s illogical, and they don’t even know what illogical means. O’Brien isn’t the best play caller to walk the face of the earth but he also knows how to help his signal caller find calm in the storm. And after last year, that’s a refreshing - and needed - baseline for Jones and for this offense.
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Once again, it is time for our tour around the AFC East. No shortage of topics.
We’ll start in Jersey, where Corey Davis announced his retirement via Instagram. The 28-year-old never lived up to where he was picked in the draft (5th overall in 2017) but he was still a serviceable player and his departure does impact the Jets’ depth at the position.
Here’s what they have as we steamroll toward cut-down day:
- Garrett Wilson
- Allen Lazard
- Mecole Hardman
- Randall Cobb
- Jason Brownlee
- Malik Taylor
- Charles Irvin
- Xavier Gipson
- Jerome Kapp
- Alex Erickson
- T.J. Luther
Not exactly a murderer's row. The top four are solid, although Hardman is injury-prone, and Cobb is, well, old. Brownlee opened a bunch of eyes early in camp but has tapered off. That leaves the Jets in an interesting spot where they too may find themselves combing the waiver wire or working the phones to add another trustworthy piece at that position. Or perhaps they live in 12 personnel with two capable tight ends in Tyler Conklin and CJ Uzomah. Then again, don’t be too surprised if you hear about NYJ kicking the tires on some bigger names once the season is a month or so old. A Mike Evans or Hunter Renfrow could pop free, depending on how Tampa and Vegas are faring. The Jets have ample cap space (not that I believe in the cap) and we know they are putting all their chips on the table the next two seasons (like the Bucs did with Brady). Evans on that roster would be something…
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In Buffalo, where to begin?
Stefon Diggs saga?
1st round corner (in year 2) unable to win a starting job?
Damar Hamlin getting cut?
Pretty eventful week for the Bills. Diggs immediately denied Stephen A. Smith’s report that the wide receiver still wants out of Buffalo, tweeting, “100% not true. I don’t know who the source is but I thought (I’d) nip this sh** in the bud already.”
Diggs has had an excellent camp, and my sources believe he is happy there “for now.” There’s a lot of pressure on the Bills to find their way to a Super Bowl, so any signs that they aren’t living up to their potential could put this story right back on the front burner.
- As for 2022 first-round cornerback Kaiir Elam, he has been unable to separate himself from veteran Dane Jackson and classmate Christian Benford (6th rounder) in this summer’s competition to see who starts opposite Tre’davious White. Elam had a bigger adjustment than the two he’s up against, coming from a University of Florida program that had him line up in press coverage a majority of the time. That’s just not how the Bills play defense, but they assumed Elam’s length and smarts would allow him to adjust to their way of doing things. It hasn’t played out that way. Elam has been decent in games but uneven in practice. And if you know Sean McDermott, you know that he’s not turning a blind eye to practice.
Contrast Elam’s situation with Christian Gonzalez’s here in New England. The rookie has been starting at outside corner basically since day one of camp. Will there be some ups and downs? Undoubtedly, but thus far, Gonzalez has improved enough that the Pats feel confident about his level of development and where he could be headed.
- I lived in Buffalo for over a month after Hamlin collapsed in Cincinnati and had to be brought back to life on the football field. The love and respect his teammates, organization, and fan base showed Hamlin and his family was moving. But here we are, 8 months removed from that incident, and there are real questions about whether or not Hamlin makes the roster. He is at best, the team’s 4th safety, and could very well be the 5th. Can he impact special teams enough to find his way onto the 53? Or as another layer of depth with two older safeties as starters (Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde). Interesting spot the Buffalo decision-makers find themselves in.
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In Miami, they are on Jonathan Taylor watch. Multiple reports say an offer has already been made to Indy for the disgruntled running back, although I’m told (as of now) it doesn’t come close to the initial asking price of a 1st round pick. A healthy Taylor would be a massive boost to an already loaded Dolphins’ roster, and would also take some of the load off Tua as the team looks to protect him as best they can.
But this is a risky proposition for whoever acquires Taylor. He’s coming off a major injury, has carried a heavy workload dating back to his college days, and is still in search of a big contract extension. Who would pay a running back that kind of cash, especially in this economy? It’s a massive dice roll and one that could be regrettable quickly. Love the player but I’d make him play out the deal and franchise tag him twice if it comes to that. And maybe that’s the best way for Taylor to maximize his value even if it’s risky on his end as well.