"Day by day" was Mac Jones' go-to phrase as the New England Patriots quarterback addressed reporters for the first time since his ankle injury.
Jones reportedly suffered a "pretty severe" high ankle sprain on the final offensive play of Sunday's 37-26 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. The injury may sideline him for multiple weeks and could require surgery and/or a stint on injured reserve.
Those details remain unclear, however, as does Jones' status for this week's road matchup with the Green Bay Packers. The second-year QB would not divulge any new information about his injury nor his recovery timetable when speaking with the media over Zoom on Monday.
"I'm just kind of taking it day to day and making sure everything's good," Jones said. "Honestly, any injury questions are Coach (Bill) Belichick's thing, so I'm not here to answer them. I appreciate everyone reaching out and looking out for me, but it's kind of just a day-to-day thing, and I'm just trying to get better."
At what point will Jones learn when he can return to the field?
"Like I said, I'm just going to take it day by day, get my treatment, do what I do and just see how it goes from there," he replied.
Jones offered a nearly identical response when asked whether he expects to play again this season.
"Like I said, I'm just going to take it day by day, kind of get my treatment and do what I do, see how I feel," he said. "If you have any more of those types of questions, just talk to Coach Belichick. I think he likes to answer those types of questions, so you can ask him."
Jones cracked a smile after that last quip. Belichick, as most Patriots fans likely know, has very little interest in publicly discussing injuries. The head coach swatted away several such questions Monday morning, saying he wouldn't "speculate wildly" about Jones' status.
Asked how his injury -- which appeared to cause him significant pain as he exited the field -- felt in the moment, Jones deadpanned: "Awesome. Thanks."
Jones later stiff-armed a question about whether there was any significance in him saying "day by day" rather than "week by week" or another descriptor. He also would not confirm a report from NFL Media's Tom Pelissero that he's seeking a second opinion on his ailing ankle.
"I'm just waiting on the time here and see how I feel," said Jones, who used the words "day by day" or "day to day" nine times during his 10-minute presser. "I don't really have a lot of information on that. Honestly, just trying to make it to tomorrow and get my rehab going there, too."
The Patriots will hold their first practice of Week 4 on Wednesday. Jones' top backup is 36-year-old Brian Hoyer, with fourth-round rookie Bailey Zappe rounding out New England's quarterback depth chart.
