As a New England Patriots rookie, Mac Jones had the opportunity to work with one of the NFL’s top offensive coordinators in Josh McDaniels.
He won’t have that luxury in Year 2.
With McDaniels leaving to become head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders — and taking three Patriots assistants with him, including the only other two on staff who had worked with quarterbacks at the NFL level — Jones will need to adapt to a new offensive setup in 2022.
The system will remain largely unchanged — head coach Bill Belichick, not his OC, dictates that — but Jones will be working with a different collection of coaches in new and unfamiliar roles. That’s a lot for a young QB to manage, on top of Jones’ personal goals to improve his strength, diet and leadership.
McDaniels, though, believes the 23-year-old will be just fine.
“Mac’s a great kid,” McDaniels told reporters Wednesday at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. “I don’t know the situation, what is and isn’t going on anywhere else, but Mac’s a great kid. He works extremely hard. I was really fortunate to have a chance to coach him, and the people that had touched Mac Jones prior to him coming to New England deserve a tremendous amount of credit. The people that coached him in high school, the people that coached him at Alabama, the parents that raised him — they did a great job with him as a human being.
“I’m not sure I’ve been around a more mature young football player in terms of understanding the game and being able to process at such a speed and at such a level that Mac was. So I don’t have any doubt that Mac’s going to meet the challenge head-on. I wish him nothing but the best, and I’ll be pulling for him, except when he plays Vegas next year.”
It’s unclear how the Patriots plan to structure their coaching staff for the upcoming season, but Joe Judge and Matt Patricia are expected to have prominent offensive roles. New England’s longest-tenured returning assistant, Nick Caley, also could see his responsibilities increase, and Belichick could shift his focus more toward New England’s offense.
Judge and Patricia both returned to Foxboro after failed head-coaching stints with the New York Giants and Detroit Lions, respectively. The former was rehired earlier this offseason with an official title of “offensive assistant.” The latter returned last offseason but worked in an advisory role in 2021.
During Super Bowl LVI week, Jones expressed confidence in the Patriots’ plan to replace McDaniels and their other departed assistants (Bo Hardegree, Mick Lombardi and Carmen Bricillo), noting Alabama employed three different offensive coordinators over his four seasons in Tuscaloosa.
“I’m happy for (McDaniels), and he’s going to do a great job,” Jones told NBC Sports Boston’s Phil Perry. “In terms of moving forward, I mean, it’s not my first rodeo in terms of dealing with a new coordinator. At Alabama, I think back to all the different guys I’ve worked with. I have a lot of experience with learning a new — we’re going to keep the same system, but new terminology here and there.
“But I know Coach Belichick’s going to have a plan, and I’m looking forward to working, just getting better as a player, regardless of who’s out there with us.”
