The New England Patriots selected Alabama product Mac Jones with the 15th pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, and the rookie quarterback made his debut in New England’s preseason opener against the Washington Football Team on Thursday night.
Jones replaced veteran quarterback Cam Newton with 55 seconds remaining in the first quarter and received a standing ovation from the home crowd at Gillette Stadium.
Mac Jones gets a standing ovation from Patriots fans as he makes his preseason debut. 🏈 pic.twitter.com/NJgs2W9uxx
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) August 13, 2021
He proceeded to complete 13-of-19 passes for 87 yards. Those are far from eye-popping numbers, but they’re also a bit misleading.
For example, Jones threw a deep-ball strike to wide receiver Kristian Wilkerson that Wilkerson dropped in the end zone. This is a dime, and it should’ve been a touchdown pass for Jones (if so, that’s 14-of-19 for 121 yards and a touchdown, and that’s surely how the Patriots think of it in their evaluation of his performance):
Mac Jones deserved a touchdown on this perfectly thrown bomb that was dropped. 🏈 pic.twitter.com/Mxm7ZEnAB3
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) August 13, 2021
Jones ran the offense with poise and made good anticipation throws.
Mac Jones on that last drive: 8-9 for 44 yards. Including this third down pass. Very nice anticipation. (Via @FTBVids_YT) pic.twitter.com/fR81bQpaLu
— Pats Buzz (@PatsBuzz) August 13, 2021
Mac Jones with the quick release.#GoPats | #Patriots
— Jamie Gatlin (@JamieGatlin17) August 13, 2021
Much of the football Twitterverse was impressed with his performance:
I don’t want to overreact but, I think 31 different team’s fans were hoping Mac Jones would stink.. I HATE to say this but, it sure seems like he will not.
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) August 13, 2021
Mac Jones oozes quiet confidence. It's like he's been in the NFL 10 years.
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) August 13, 2021
If I were a Pats fan I’d feel really good about Mac Jones
— WASHINGTON FOOTBALL (@HogsHaven) August 13, 2021
The best aspect of this night for Mac Jones is that his game has traveled from practice field to game field tonight. His tempo, accuracy and command are precisely what we’ve seen in every camp practice except one.
— Tom E. Curran (@tomecurran) August 13, 2021
*whispers*
Mac Jones looks pretty good
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) August 13, 2021
There’s plenty of room for improvement, but overall, it was a solid showing and step forward for Jones in his hopes to be the Patriots’ starting quarterback. It’s surely happening at some point this season; it’s just a matter of when. NFL Network and DirecTV Red Zone host Andrew Siciliano saw enough to predict that the regular-season debut for Jones will come in Week 1.
I’ll say it.
Week 1
Tua vs Mac Jones— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) August 13, 2021
As for the preseason game, New England came away with a 22-13 victory.
