FOXBOROUGH - If Bill Belichick has coached his last game with the New England Patriots, one of the primary reasons - beyond wins and losses - will be his inability to develop Mac Jones. Maybe that's unfair. Maybe Jones is what he is as a player, and there were no significant steps for him to take.
But we are talking about someone who went from being the best rookie quarterback in the 2021-22 season to being unplayable two years later - benched four separate times this season. The last sit down - coming on November 26th against the Giants - was a permanent demotion, and Jones ended the year as the team's emergency quarterback in the finale. That's about as far of a fall from grace as I can remember, but one that dovetails nicely with the franchise hitting rock bottom.
"Just grateful to have played so many games here and started games here," said Jones Monday morning as the team gathered for one final time. "It's different, right? It's a different situation. It's tough, but I always want to be able to help the team whether I'm one, two, or three, and I feel like that's a valuable lesson: that I'm a team player. Like I said, I have a lot of respect for the guys in this room. And I have a lot of close friends that I'll be friends with for my whole life."
That sounds like someone who would like a change, which I've heard from sources within the building. Not in a malicious sort of "eff you" way, but more of a "this isn't working, and all parties involved might be better off" way. I asked Jones if he would welcome a change, specifying a new team.
"Um, look, I feel like I have a lot of room to grow, and there's a lot of things I can do better, and I know that, and I've worked hard, and I'm always gonna put my best foot forward and compete. I know that. That's all I've ever done - is compete everywhere I've been. I really love this place and have a lot of respect for this place. And you know, we'll see where it goes."
Once you get through all the cliches, you'll notice what was absent - Jones saying he wants to stay. He was asked a follow-up that wasn't so much advancing the question I asked but reiterating it (when the hosts aren't listening, part 657...). The answer once again failed to include those words.
That leads us to the next part of this cluster: does Jones feel like he and Belichick can effectively work together? I don't know what to tell you if you don't think there's animosity. Belichick wouldn't share any thoughts on the third-year pro when asked about him in his season-ending press conference, nor would he do it after the game. Jones took an alternate approach, focusing mainly on ownership. And his one answer that did focus on Belichick was...odd?
"I think, you know, growing up watching the Patriots and being a big fan of the Patriots, I feel like he and Tom (Brady) had a lot of success," said Jones. "And that was something that I really noticed when I was little, and I have a lot of respect for what they did and how he and Tom won six Super Bowls and all that. So, a very impressive run, and I really think that we'll see what the future holds."
That was then, and this is now - which is about as far removed from those golden days as it's ever been under Belichick. Two straight years where the offense went into the tank, although this year, under Bill O'Brien, they went from bad to brutal, averaging a league-low 13.9 PPG (tied with Carolina). The Pats were also 30th in total yards, 28th in passing yards, and 26th in rush. They had 29 giveaways, including 21 interceptions. Stink, stank, and stunk didn't just apply to one aspect of the offense; it covered the group as a whole. Jones said he felt as though he let down a lot of people, but also wanted you to know - as he reviews the season - it wasn't entirely on him.
"I always take notes, and I've gotten a chance to go back and look at my notes from the past three years. And there are a lot of things I can do better, and there are a lot of things that are in my control, but there's also a lot of things that are out of my control," he noted. "I've always said that I'm gonna focus on the controllables, and that's important to me. But like I said earlier, I feel like I've made progress, especially in the last couple of weeks. I've been here early, left late. A lot of people would have just said, 'I'm done", and I'm not going to do that... "So that's where I'm at right now, and that's why I'm looking forward to the next opportunity. I know it's gonna come, but at the end of the day, as a quarterback and a competitor, you got to be ready, right? So I'm going to be ready."
Maybe Jones can rebuild himself and become a successful quarterback again, but the idea that can happen here - with this coaching staff or another - seems improbable. It would behoove both sides to find their own version of an "elegant solution" and start anew.