“They had bubble wrap on him” – Colin Cowherd believes Mac Jones was ‘way too protected’ by the Patriots and this will affect his play-making ability in the 2022 season
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Mac Jones and Colin Cowherd
Mac Jones impressed everyone in the league in his rookie season. Initially, Jones was predicted to be selected by the San Francisco 49ers third overall but the 49ers went ahead with Trey Lance and Jones was picked up by the Patriots 15th overall.
The star rookie of the Patriots led his team to a 10-7 winning season with a playoff berth which earned him Pro Bowl honors. He finished the season with 3,801 passing yards, 22 touchdowns, and a 67.6 completion percentage, which were the highest among rookie quarterbacks in 2021.
The New England Patriots limited Mac Jones in the previous season and this will limit him in 2022
While Mac Jones won New England games, Colin Cowherd believes the quarterback was protected way too much. On The Herd with Colin Cowherd, the host explained in detail how Jones will fall short in the 2022 season as he wasn’t exposed as much as other quarterbacks in the league which will add to his limitations.
Cowherd reported that an anonymous coach in the league told ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler that Mac Jones was “way too protected” as the Patriots starter. There’s no dispute that Jones was efficient and accurate but he wasn’t given the chance to throw the ball quite often. The perfect example of the previous statement is the Patriots vs Bills game played in December where the Patriots defeated the Bills 14-10. Cowherd compared the performance of both the QBs.
Josh Allen of the Bills had 15 completions for 145 yards for a touchdown along with 39 rushing yards. Jones on the other hand had a mere 2 completions of 3 attempts for 19 yards with no TDs and -3 rushing yards. “That told you everything,” Cowherd said. “They had bubble wrap on Mac Jones. Safe and protective and bubble wrapping your QB doesn’t win. What’s more concerning is that Matt Patricia as of this morning will be calling plays, a defensive coach. You think he’s gonna push the envelope, be super creative, progressive. NO.
The last few Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks are guys with big arms taking chances down the field, playmakers who are confident on the field. “The Patriots don’t have that play-caller in Matt Patricia, they don’t have that kinda personnel and that’s not the kinda QB he (Jones) is. The game has changed,” Cowherd said. The Patriots ran a more rush-heavy play this season and Jones was hardly given any chance to throw the ball. So, this will put Jones at risk in the 2022 season and will ultimately cost the Patriots much-needed wins.
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Yash Karandekar
(1023 Articles Published)