New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones cleared the air Monday after he said his post-game comments Sunday were misconstrued.
After the Pats’ 24-17 home loss to the Miami Dolphins, Jones told reporters, “Definitely got to play better and learn from it and be here early and leave late and do it together. … If a couple guys are doing it, it’s not good enough, clearly” (via Pro Football Talk).
That sounded as if Jones were calling out one or more teammates for not working hard enough.
That would not be a good sign for a player who came under fire last season for openly complaining about the team’s play calls, including one notable incident caught on a hot mic.
Jones told Boston’s WEEI Monday that he did not intend his comments to be critical of his teammates.
“I mean, it’s no,” Jones said (via The Boston Globe). “I’m talking about being close so, whatever you’re doing, just do more. It’s not like it’s rocket science. If you watch 30 minutes of film, watch an hour. If you lift for 45 minutes, lift for an hour and a half. Just whatever you can do so what when we’re in this situation — you know for me, that’s how I feel better about everything. You can only put in so much work.”
No one can say Jones isn’t putting in the effort to be successful.
“There’s 24 hours a day. You have to sleep for 8 to 10 of them. All of the other hours have to be about work,” he told WEEI.
Jones completed 31-of-42 attempts against Miami for 231 yards, with a touchdown and interception. The third-year quarterback passed for 316 yards in the opener against the Philadelphia Eagles.
