Mac Jones Blames Weather For Early Pick-Six in Patriots-Eagles

FOXBORO, Mass. — Mac Jones took a remarkable amount of accountability after the Patriots’ season-opening 25-20 loss to the Eagles on Sunday. In fact, the third-year quarterback probably was a bit too hard on himself after a mostly strong performance.

However, put the blame on someone else — Mother Nature — for one of the game’s biggest plays.

With heavy rain falling at Gillette Stadium, Jones ended New England’s first drive by throwing a pick-six to Philadelphia cornerback Darius Slay. Jones threw high to receiver Kendrick Bourne, who saw the ball bounce off the tips of his fingers and into Slay’s arms.

“I threw too high — in the rain,” Jones said after the game. “That’s gonna happen. It’s a bad throw.”

At the time, the pick-six felt like a back-breaking play from which the Patriots wouldn’t recover. However, New England rallied from a 16-0 deficit — the deficit was just two points at halftime — and twice in the final minutes had opportunities to drive for a lead. It was a spirited comeback attempt but, in the end, the Slay touchdown proved to be an early death blow.

For his part, Bourne felt he could’ve done something to prevent the turnover.

“Just react faster,” the Patriots receiver said. “Bat the ball down, I’m not sure. But it’s good to go through adversity. Testing us, we were tested in a tough situation. I think we responded well.”

Jones echoed those sentiments while praising Bourne, who finished with six catches for 64 yards and two touchdowns.

“Yeah, KB’s one of my closest friends,” Jones said. “And I know that he’s gonna run as hard as he can one every play and fight the ball. And our receivers have been doing that very well. … He kept fighting (after the interception). And I know that about KB, we’ve kind of been in these situations far too often where we’re behind, and I know that’s my go-to guy.”

When the dust settled, Jones finished Sunday’s game with 35 completions on 54 attempts for 316 yards and three touchdowns to along with the interception. He added 15 yards on the ground.

Jones will look to keep the mistakes at a minimum next Sunday night when New England hosts the Miami Dolphins.