Did we just witness the Summer of Mac Jones?
The third-year pro had a solid training camp (detailed in this space), showing a good grasp of the offense, improved pocket presence, and his trademark accuracy. Jones also lost the heavy weight of last season, which had saddled him with bad body language and seemed to throw his entire football existence in New England in doubt.
There was none of that this July and August. Jones walked around like he owned the joint, and the smile that was so hard to find as the Pats slogged to an 8-9 record in 2022-23 returned, not just when he was talking to confidants Hunter Henry, Kendrick Bourne, and David Andrews. Hell, I saw him crack a toothy grin with Bill Belichick, and the coach actually smiled back. What in the wide world of sports is happening?!? Next thing we know, cats and dogs will be living together in perfect harmony (an aside: I'm out on cats. They would eat you if they were bigger. I won't argue this).
This shift started with Jones, who took a deep dive into his actions and response to what happened around him last season. Teammates told me back in the spring that the former first-rounder had already found a better place mentally and was translating into his workouts. Jones understood that for him to be the leader the Pats needed him to be - and player - he'd need to win back select parts of the locker room underwhelmed by his play and actions. Mission accomplished, at least to this point.
"I feel like Mac is in a great place as the leader, and that trickles to the whole team," said Bourne. "Believing in him and believing in each other."
"He makes it fun to go out there and play," said Mike Gesicki. "We're always joking around, but when it's time to lock in, he's leading the offense and has done a great job doing so. Throws a really catchable ball. Really good timing. Understanding concepts, spacing, and routes. Understands when guys are getting ready to break based on leverage and all that kind of stuff. It's been awesome going through training camp with him and growing with him off the field, too."
While Mac taking responsibility for his actions and behaviors last season is enormous in this rediscovery of self, of "Alabama Mac," so too has the addition of Bill O'Brien and what that told the quarterback. Everything that's been done by the offensive coordinator since his return to New England wasn't to continue the psychological games that Belichick and the previous offensive "brain trust" put Jones through; instead, it's the opposite.
That's not to say the signal caller won't get scorched by O'Brien, but it's temporary, and there's no need for Jones to worry that there'll be some unnamed sources sharing with the media what's wrong with Jones and, conversely, what's right with Bailey Zappe. How many times did that happen over the last 10 or 11 months? There are too many for an organization that gets off on being this buttoned-up operation. Hell, over that stretch, they had more leaks than the Iraqi Navy (name the movie).
The focus now is on the field, and O'Brien is running the system he embraced in Tuscaloosa, a tailor-made approach for Jones. It's what the quarterback's comfortable with. It's a shared language but also a shared vision.
As I reported in April, these two were spending a ton of time together, growing increasingly comfortable with each other and what each was about. What is that? Winning. And to get there, O'Brien understands he needs to allow Jones to use that supercomputer processor of a brain. The feeling inside the building is that's happening, and it can help elevate an offense that was mired in the muck to - at the very least - find level ground.
With the way the Patriots feel about their defense, that should translate into more victories. That would be a welcome and needed change after losing more than they've won over the last three-and-a-half years. But what it will also accomplish is determining whether or not your quarterback of the future is also the quarterback in the present. Based on this summer, the arrow is pointing in the right direction.
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For the third straight season, Stefon Diggs has been named one of the captains of the Buffalo Bills. Who knows if that means he and the organization are in a better place, but the honor certainly hit the wide receiver right in the heart.
"For me, it means more now than it did when I was my first time ever being named captain," he told reporters earlier this week. "It's just the consistency of it, the respect from your peers. I know the biggest thing for me is always earning the respect from my teammates, earning the respect from my coaches."
"And when you get named a captain, it's like reassurance; it's like damn, you might be halfway decent at what you do, not just professionally but as far as like how you represent yourself and who you are as a man."
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Sticking with the Bills, they have yet to find a replacement at middle linebacker for Tremaine Edmonds, who left for a massive deal with the Bears in free agency. Three in-house candidates are in various states of disrepair: Terrel Bernard, Dorian Williams, and Baylon Spector. There's also Tyrel Dodson, who's probably the default starter, but even that's not written in stone. Buffalo inked Christian Kirksey to the practice squad, and it's not out of the realm of possibility that he plays a significant role in week one, a Monday nighter in Jersey against the Jets. Less than ideal for them.
Also, looking ahead, Von Miller starts the year on the PUP, meaning he's not eligible to come off until week 5's game at the earliest. Teams are allowed up to three weeks once a player comes off PUP to put him on the active roster, meaning there is a grey area for that first meeting with the Patriots, week 7. I'd expect him to be ready - Miller was pushing for week one - but it’s something to monitor.
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The Dolphins put several players on IR to start the season, including RB Jeff Wilson and CB Jalen Ramsey. The timeline on Ramsey points toward December, meaning he would miss both games against the Patriots.
In his place, the Fins have settled on Kader Kohou to start opposite Xavien Howard. Undrafted a year ago, Kohou spent nearly 54% of his 896 snaps last year lined up in the slot and was the highest-rated AFC East slot corner (per Pro Football Focus), allowing a QB Rating of 77 (Michael Carter was 81, Taron Johnson 106 and Myles Bryant 107).
To Kohou's credit, he performed about the same as an outside corner, and that will need to translate in Vic Fangio's system because the player who should be playing that spot, Noah Igbinoghene, was traded to Dallas last week for Cowboys failed second-rounder, Kelvin Joseph. Igbinoghene, the former first-rounder out of Auburn, just couldn't cut it in Miami, starting only five games over three years: swing and a miss from GM Chris Grier (it happens everywhere).
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I am with Colts GM Chris Ballard, who said the Jonathan Taylor situation "sucks." But that's where it stops with Ballard and yours truly.
I find it comical that Indy is asking for a first-rounder or making wild requests of the Dolphins (Jaylen Waddle?) as part of any package for the running back. You won't pay him, but you will ask for the moon? Stop it. Ballard also intimated that Taylor's not getting an extension because the Colts stunk last season: "We won four games last year. We won four games."
So, does that mean no one gets an extension? And what will happen on that front after this year with a raw rookie QB? Does that mean they won't pay any of their next crop of free agents either if they win a handful of games?
Ballard needs to poop or get off the pot. In the meantime, Taylor rots another four weeks on PUP. Not great for anyone, fans included.
