Patriots Mailbag: What Mac Jones Must Do Vs. Raiders To Keep Job

Is this a make-or-break week for Mac Jones? Is Bill Belichick's successor already in-house? Was effort lacking during the New England Patriots' worst two-game stretch of the Belichick era?

We're answering those questions and more in this week's Patriots mailbag.

@PhinTweets
How long till Mac Jones is riding pine?
This Sunday's game in Las Vegas feels like the last stand for ol' McCorkle. He needs to show the Patriots something in order to justify keeping his job.

In my view, a passable performance will be enough to achieve that. Jones doesn't need to go out there and throw for 350 yards and three touchdowns. He just needs to play smart, responsible football and not be an active detriment to his team (which, yes, is more difficult when you're playing behind an offensive line as porous as New England's and with receivers who consistently struggle to create separation).

If he does that, I bet the Patriots stick with him, even if they lose Sunday and fall to a once-unimaginable 1-5. It's clear they don't love any of the options behind him (Bailey Zappe, Will Grier and Malik Cunningham, whom offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien said mostly has played receiver in practice).

But if Jones continues his recent trend of sloppy ball security (six turnovers in the last two games, three returned for touchdowns), awful mechanics and panic plays, New England needs to make a change. Two straight outings like the ones he had against Dallas and New Orleans were bad enough. Three would be a bridge too far, especially for a QB whose strengths are supposed to be his smarts and decision-making.

“One of the main reasons why we’ve played from behind is we’ve turned the ball over,” O’Brien said this week. “Not only have we turned the ball over, but we’ve turned it over for touchdowns. So, that’s No. 1. We have to stop doing that.”

Jones doesn't have the rocket arm, mobility or elite physical traits that most of the NFL's top signal-callers possess. If he's also turning the ball over multiple times per game, what is he bringing to the table? Answer: not much.

This isn't an ideal matchup for Jones, either. Before his Dallas disaster two weeks ago, the worst outing of his NFL career probably was his game against the Raiders last December. He didn't turn the ball over in that infamous last-second loss but set career lows in completion percentage (41.9%) and yards per attempt (3.6).

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@jack_roos
Zack - Mac is getting all of the attention and probably rightfully so but how does the lack of a run game impact what we are seeing on the field?
It's all connected, and it all starts up front. The Patriots' consistently poor O-line play is bleeding into every other aspect of their offense.

They've started two players at right tackle (Calvin Anderson and Vederian Lowe), and both have been among the worst in the NFL at their position, according to multiple advanced metrics. The performance of their guards has declined, too, with Mike Onwenu and Cole Strange both nagged by injuries that have lingered for months and rookie Atonio Mafi looking out of his depth at this early stage of his career.

The Patriots' offensive production will not increase unless the O-line improves. Simple as that.

@PaxtonGuy1
Apologies if this has already been addressed, but do you think Mayo's role as presumptive coach-in-waiting changes if Kraft decides to part ways with BB? Does he have to re-apply for the gig so to speak?
If Robert Kraft does ultimately decide to dismiss Bill Belichick as New England's head coach, I'd view Jerod Mayo as the clear favorite to replace him. Kraft essentially said as much after Mayo was convinced to turn down head-coaching interviews elsewhere and re-up with New England this past offseason.

"There’s no ceiling on his ability to be a head coach, and he’ll be a head coach," Kraft told reporters at the NFL annual meeting in March. "I’m sure of that. I hope he’s with us. So we’ll see what happens."

Does that mean Mayo automatically would be elevated to the top job if Belichick was fired? That, I don't know. It would make sense for Kraft to consider all of his options before making a franchise-shaping decision like that. But based on what he's said publicly, I imagine Mayo would be at the top of his list.

It would be fascinating to see how Mayo would structure his coaching staff in that scenario. Would he retain the same crew of lieutenants as Belichick or clean house and start fresh? Would Belichick's sons, defensive play-caller Steve and safeties coach Brian, stick around if their father was shown the door?

The first and most obvious question, though, is what would prompt Kraft to actually pull the cord on the greatest coach in NFL history. Does he have a particular win threshold in mind? Do appearances matter (e.g. getting blown out by 30 points rather than dropping close games)? It's surely a call the Patriots owner does not want to make.

But I've had this quote, from that same Kraft news conference, in mind as the Patriots' season has spiraled in recent weeks:

“Look, I’d like him to break Don Shula’s record, but I’m not looking for any of our players to get great stats. We’re about winning and doing whatever we can to win. That’s what our focus is now. It’s very important to me that we make the playoffs. That’s what I hope happens next year."

@JasonBrassard2
Do you think there is a lack of effort from the Patriots offensive veterans? Could our younger, faster receivers bring some much needed swag back to the offense?
Kendrick Bourne did say after last week's game that players need "more effort," to "work harder" and to "want it more." So, yes, I would say that effort has been a problem during New England's recent nosedive. It's unclear who is lacking in that area, however, so it's tough to say that benching one particular player and swapping in another would make a difference.

Either way, you probably will see some different faces in the Patriots' receiving corps this weekend with JuJu Smith-Schuster and Demario Douglas both still in concussion protocol as of Thursday. Rookie Kayshon Boutte could slide back into the lineup after four straight healthy scratches, and Tyquan Thornton could make his return from injured reserve after getting back on the practice field this week. A practice squad elevation is possible, too, with Jalen Reagor, T.J. Luther and Cunningham the three options there.

Douglas' injury was disappointing, as he's been the Patriots' most exciting offensive player thus far. Assuming he's able to return soon from his head injury, New England should give him increased playing time in the back half of the season.