Add Brandon Staley to the growing list of opposing coaches to rave about New England Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones.
Staley, whose Los Angeles Chargers will host the Patriots on Sunday at SoFi Stadium, lauded the poise, anticipation, toughness, decision-making and command of the Patriots’ offense that Jones has displayed in his first pro season.
“I see a guy that’s an outstanding decision-maker,” the first-year head coach told reporters, via Patriots.com. “I think his processing is at a premium for a young quarterback; you can really see that he can see the game. I know the way they play on offense, they ask a lot of that position. You can tell that he can process at a high level because of the type of plays they’re running. They’re running a lot of premium-type offensive plays that you would think a more experienced quarterback would have.
“He has that kind of command over their system, and I think he has really good anticipation as a thrower. I think that’s a big asset of him just as a pure passer — he has great anticipation and his ball placement is outstanding. He’s got real toughness for the position. You can see when he’s in tight pockets that he’s willing to hang tough and play the way you’re supposed to play.”
Jones has been the NFL’s most impressive rookie QB this season, but he might not be the focal point of the Patriots’ offense on Sunday.
With Staley’s defense struggling to defend the run this season (32nd in Football Outsiders’ run defense DVOA), New England could look to batter the Chargers with running back Damien Harris and an offensive line that seems to be rounding into form after an inauspicious start. Harris has gone over 100 rushing yards in each of the last two games, averaging 6.5 yards per carry during that stretch.
The Chargers have been much better against the pass, ranking fifth in DVOA through seven weeks.
Defensively, the Patriots will need to combat LA’s own talented young signal-caller, reigning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Justin Herbert. Last year’s Pats-Chargers matchup featured Herbert’s worst NFL performance to date, with New England holding him to career lows in completion percentage (49.1%), yards per attempt (3.9) and passer rating (43.7) in a 45-0 rout.
Herbert finished that game without a touchdown pass — the only time that’s happened in his 21 career starts — and threw two interceptions, one of just three multi-pick games he’s had.
The Patriots sit at 3-4 after blowing out the New York Jets at home last week. The Chargers are 4-2 and coming off a bye.
