'It does help, though'
Mac Jones wasn’t willing to divulge any nuggets Monday about his behind-the-scenes dealings with New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick.
Jones was asked during an appearance on WEEI’s “Merloni & Fauria” whether he has weekly 1-on-1 meetings with Belichick, as Tom Brady did during his two decades in New England.
“Um, yeah, that’s top-secret information,” the rookie quarterback replied, laughing. “We obviously do meet with him. It does help, though, when we meet and he goes through the situations and stuff. That’s pretty much it.
“He does a great job of coaching everybody, and we’re all listening to every word that he says because he’s been a great coach for a long time and he’s seen a lot more football than all of us. So we’re all there to listen and learn, whether it’s a team meeting or whatever.”
It may be “top-secret information,” but Jones, who threw for a career-high 310 yards Sunday in a 36-13 win over the Tennessee Titans, actually has addressed his midweek meetings with Belichick in the past. The ones he spoke about aren’t 1-on-1, but they take place each Tuesday and feature all of the Patriots’ QBs.
“We try to meet with the quarterbacks and stuff and figure out just situational stuff, which helps,” Jones said in late September. “I can’t go into details on that, but it is really beneficial. Just whether it’s the team we’re playing or whoever, just watching football, hearing it from a great coach like him and getting advice from the guys in the room that have played for a lot longer than I have, so just listening and trying to see what they see and pick up on things, and it definitely helps just kind of start the week off right, I guess you could say.”
Jones and the Patriots will be seeking their seventh consecutive victory when they visit Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills next Monday night. New England currently holds a half-game lead over Buffalo in the AFC East and trails the Baltimore Ravens by a half-game for first place in the AFC.