Jacksonville Jaguars Focus on Their Own Strategy Over Mac Jones' 'Patriot Ways

The "Patriot Way" became famous for helping the New England Patriots win six Super Bowls in 18 seasons, thanks to coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady. During that time, the Patriots reached the Super Bowl nine times and the AFC Championship Game 13 times.

However, the Jacksonville Jaguars aren’t interested in quarterback Mac Jones' "Patriot ways" after trading for the former Alabama star from New England in March. Jones, now the backup for Trevor Lawrence in the 2024 season, has proven his skills during preseason games. He completed 38 out of 52 passes, threw for 421 yards, and had three touchdowns with no interceptions. His passing yards led the AFC, and his passing-efficiency rating of 115.9 was the best in the NFL during the preseason.

"Mac has played extremely well recently and is really committed to what we do," said Jaguars coach Doug Pederson after the preseason. "He occasionally slips back into his Patriot habits, and we remind him he’s in Jacksonville now. But overall, he's done a great job managing the offense, getting everyone involved, and throwing the ball well."

Jones was picked by New England as the 15th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft after the Patriots had gone a year without Brady. In his first season, Jones started every game, made it to the Pro Bowl, and led the Patriots to the playoffs. But things worsened over the next two seasons, with the Patriots winning only 8 of the 25 games Jones started. His interception rate rose, and his touchdown-pass rate fell.

Meanwhile, the Jaguars chose Trevor Lawrence as the No. 1 pick in the same draft, 14 spots before Jones. Lawrence had a tough rookie year with 12 touchdown passes and 17 interceptions. But in his first two seasons with coach Pederson, Lawrence threw 46 touchdown passes and 22 interceptions.

C.J. Beathard had been Lawrence’s backup for three seasons, but the Jaguars released him last week after an injury settlement, leaving Lawrence and Jones as the team’s active quarterbacks. Rookie John Rhys Plumlee is on the practice squad.

The Jaguars will start their season against the Miami Dolphins at noon CDT on Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.

In New England, Bailey Zappe took over as the Patriots' starting quarterback after they benched Jones for the final six games of the 2023 season. However, Zappe is now on the Kansas City Chiefs’ practice squad and will not be the Patriots' starter in 2024. The Patriots drafted North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye with the third pick in the NFL Draft, but he won't start the season either. Instead, New England will start Jacoby Brissett against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. Brissett has more experience, with five more starts than Jones, and their career passing-efficiency ratings are almost identical: Jones at 85.8 and Brissett at 85.3.