Mac Jones’ performance in the New England Patriots’ Week 3 loss to the New Orleans Saints caught Nick Wright’s attention — for all the wrong reasons.
The Patriots installed a more aggressive offensive game plan Sunday, allowing Jones to throw downfield after back-to-back games against the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets in which New England leaned heavily on its rushing attack and short-passing game.
It didn’t work. Jones, who was pressured early and often by New Orleans’ defense, threw three interceptions as New England suffered a 28-13 defeat that dropped the Patriots’ record to 1-2 ahead of a crucial Week 4 showdown with Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
On Monday, Wright explained on FS1’s “First Things First” that he jumped the gun last week by insisting Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels open up the playbook a bit against the Saints.
“I try to never give parenting advice because we’re all just doing our best, we’re all just guessing. And last week I broke that rule and I was punished for it,” Wright said. “I said, ‘Hey, let Mac Jones not order off the kids menu.’ And the Patriots were like, ‘Hey, Nick’s Wright, let’s let him not order off the kids menu.’ Twenty minutes into the meal, he’s having an allergic reaction, they’re breaking out the EpiPen. They’re like, ‘Damn it, we knew it should’ve been chicken fingers. This shrimp primavera is no good.’ Because they let him try to be a big boy, and he wasn’t wearing his big boy pants, I’m sorry to tell you. It was a rough night for Mac Jones.”
Jones completed 30 of 51 passes for 270 yards with one touchdown and the three aforementioned picks. His 58.8% completion percentage, 55.2 passer rating and 5.3 yards per attempt all represented season-lows.
Of course, New England’s loss shouldn’t be pinned solely on Jones, the 15th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft who beat out Cam Newton during the preseason for the starting job. The offensive line struggled, Jonnu Smith had an awful game and the Patriots again made mistakes they don’t typically make.
But Jones’ effort should serve as a reality check. While his future appears bright, this season could feature both peaks and valleys for the 23-year-old signal-caller and New England’s offense as a whole.
