Belichick admits he could drop Mac Jones in cryptic message after latest defeat
New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick hinted he may be about to make some changes to his team which could include dropping Mac Jones.
The NFL AFC East team suffered their eighth loss of the season when the Indianapolis Colts won a low-scoring affair at the Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt, Germany. The Patriots have scored more than 20 points just once this season and have failed to reach double figures on three occasions. The third time occurred on Sunday as the Colts won 10-6 to secure their fifth win of the season and take their record to .500.
Jones had another disappointing day at the office as the Patriots’ offense, which is ranked 31st in the NFL, continued to struggle. After the game, coach Belichick neither confirmed nor denied if Jones would be the starting QB moving forward. “We just got back from Germany... We'll look at everything across the board,” the 71-year-old told reporters.
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After throwing a fourth-quarter interception, Belichick decided to bench Jones for the final drive and replaced him with Bailey Zappe. The 24-year-old did not fare too much better. The Patriots took over at their 14-yard line with a chance to drive for a touchdown that would have clinched the game.
But Zappe was ultimately intercepted, ending any chance the team had of making a comeback. Asked about the quarterback position going forward, Belichick said: "We'll worry about next week next week. The game just got over." Jones finished with 15-of-20 for 170 yards and was sacked five times.
When asked if he feels Belichick still believes in him, Jones said: "To make people believe, you have to be better. I'm not sure. I don't know." When the team had the chance to potentially take the lead, Jones was intercepted by safety Julian Blackmon after an attempted pass went well short of its intended target with four minutes remaining.
Assessing his current form, Jones said: "I've played well in my career before, but not right now. It's peaks and valleys. I'm kind of in a valley right now. I just have to bounce back.
"It was a terrible throw. Hit it in practice, just not a good throw. I knew where to go, just didn't do it right. There were some things I was working through, but it doesn't matter. No excuses."
He added that he was informed on the sideline that he would play no further part "It's hard, right? It's a difficult situation, but at the end of the day, I want the team to win,” Jones added. “I'll always be that person. We didn't win, so it's hard for everybody.
Jones was benched in the final quarter of the Patriots' defeat to the Indianapolis Colts (Mario Hommes/DeFodi Images via Getty Images)“I have to play better and not even be in that situation." During the game, Jones was seen having a heated discussion with offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien during the third quarter.
After Jones attempted a pass risky pass that fell incomplete, when he returned to the bench, O’Brien animatedly spoke to Jones as they reviewed the play on a tablet. Asked about the exchange, Jones hinted that O'Brien was pointing out open receivers that he did not see.
"I just try to go through my reads and hit the open guy. I have to do a better job at that," Jones said. "It's really hard out there in the NFL -- it's really good defense -- but there were a lot of open guys I could have hit."
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