HC Bill Belichick ‘stopped talking’ to Mac Jones during the strained relationship saga of tumultuous Patriots 2023 season

Bill Belichick was not happy with Mac Jones reportedly.

HC Bill Belichick ‘stopped talking’ to Mac Jones during the strained relationship saga of tumultuous Patriots 2023 season

Mac Jones and Bill Belichick (via NFL.com)

The near-two-and-a-half-decade-long journey of Bill Belichick with the New England Patriots recently came to an end. He was sacked after another poor season with the Patriots. The Patriots are going to start a new era with the HC Jerod Mayo. Belichick’s future is still uncertain.

After the two separated their paths, reports started popping up with a claim that everything was not very good between the head coach and his players. In a recent report by Mark Daniels from MassLive, it was claimed that Belichick stopped talking to his quarterback Mac Jones after week 12. Jones was benched in week 12 and never got the starting position back. Bailey Zappe the backup quarterback started instead of him.

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Daniels added:

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After Week 12, when Jones was benched, Belichick eventually stopped speaking to his quarterback. That lack of communication came to a head in the Patriots’ final game. It created an uncomfortable situation. Jones openly rooted for Zappe trying to show coaches he was handling his demotion maturely. However, behind closed doors, observers noted Jones had little support. It seemed like he was being shut out.
Mark Daniels’ report read

Jones’ struggles throughout the season were evident. The quarterback did not have good touchdown numbers and was subjected to several interceptions till week 12. The QB registered 10 touchdowns in 12 games and was subjected to 12 interceptions.

Belichick might have gotten frustrated with the performance that Jones had. He was mainly frustrated with things going out of his hand. That might have probably led the veteran to stop talking with Jones.

Bill Belichick was severely criticized for his tactics in the 2023-24 season

Belichick had one of the worst seasons in 2023-24. The Patriots only had 4 wins against 13 losses. Their worst since the year 2000. Belichick was brutally criticized for his mismanagement. Several analysts claimed that Jones played badly because of his poor strategy.

In addition to this, Belichick was also criticized for the Malik Cunningham case. When Cunningham left him to join the Baltimore Ravens, Belichick was subjected to criticisms for not giving the latter enough playing time.

Bill Belichick
Bill Belichick (via Imago)

The Patriots are suffering from a quarterback problem. Nonetheless, they have not closed the door on the quarterback Mac Jones. Jones can even start as the regular quarterback under Mayo if the team does not sign any quarterback further.

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