Mac Jones impressed teammates and opponents in NFL debut

From an individual standpoint, Mac Jones‘ debut went as well as anyone could have realistically hoped. He completed 29-of-39 pass attempts (the highest ever completion percentage by a quarterback in his debut with at least 39 pass attempts) for 281 yards and a touchdown. Perhaps more importantly, he didn’t turn the ball over once. Outside of a wild fumble on his first drop back, the 15th-overall pick held his own, and didn’t seem phased by the NFL game.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was short on words after the game, given the overall disappointing nature of his team’s performance. Yet he briefly touched on Jones’ performance, and seemed to view it as a positive.

“Mac competed hard,” Belichick said. “I thought we had a lot of guys competing hard. We’ve just got to perform better as a team.” That’s not the most ringing endorsement, but it stood out given the tone of the rest of Belichick’s brief media session.

Jones’ teammates spoke more openly about his performance. “He definitely has a lot of poise. He stayed composed throughout the game,” running back and captain James White noted. “Obviously, everything wasn’t perfect, but he kept us in it, keeping everybody motivated in the huddle.”

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  "I thought he did well. I think he'll continue to get better too. That's the type of player he is and person he is," receiver Nelson Agholor said. "I think he is a guy that loves the game of football and I think he is a really resilient player. He stays in the game and plays hard and is only going to get better."
  
  Agholor cemented himself the answer to the trivia question 'who caught Mac Jones' first career touchdown,' when he grabbed a seven-yard throw from the rookie in the second quarter. Asked about his chemistry with his new quarterback, Agholor remarked, "we just keep on working and we've done that. We've practiced hard and we need to continue to do that. I think good things will happen if we practice hard."
  
  Jones didn't just draw compliments from his teammates, but the opposing sideline as well. After the game, Dolphins head coach Brian Flores told reporters "I thought he [Jones] did a really nice job. I thought he did a really nice job. Got the ball out, was able to kind of move their offense, pick up first downs, drive them down field."

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  Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who Jones backed up at Alabama, as also asked about his former teammate's performance. "I was happy for him," Tagovailoa said. "You know, it being his first real game with a crowd like this, I mean, I thought he made some really good throws. And their execution on third down I think was really good, and Mac looks like he fits perfectly into their offense and system. I was happy for him."
  
  Former Patriots defensive back Jason McCourty, who signed with Miami in the offseason, offered his assessment of what it was like facing Jones. "He didn’t really make any mistakes, he was poised. Even watching him in the huddle getting guys in, yelling, commanding, and a lot of what he looked like in the preseason, is how he performed," McCourty explained. "He gave his team a chance to win. He didn’t really make any mistakes, didn’t throw any errant passes and he is a poised young guy."
  
  In fact, the only players seemingly unimpressed with Jones debut was Jones himself. Asked to assess his own performance after the game, he replied, "I think we can get better. That's just how we have to look at it. Definitely wasn't good enough, starting with me. So we've got to watch the film. We lost, so it's not good enough."
  
  "I can do a better job just going through my reads and communicating," he continued, when asked if he was surprised by anything the Dolphins defense showed him. "So I'll improve on my communication, and we'll make sure that we're better. It wasn't good enough."

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  Jones was so locked into his own performance, he wasn't even interested in keeping the ball from his first NFL touchdown pass. " It doesn't really matter. It was one touchdown," he said when asked why he didn't want the keepsake. "We've got to score more. It's not like the game was over right there. We've got to do better in the red zone and get more touchdowns, and we will."
  
  Moving forwards, Jones said the team needs to be better in practice in order to improve - something he's taking upon himself to make happen. "I think being the quarterback, I need to do a better job, demanding better in practice," he explained. "Sometimes I just let things slide, myself included. That's not good enough. So I'm going to try and be more vocal, and I am a vocal person, but it's kind of a new situation, and I can be better. But it starts with me."
  
  There's a lot for Jones to be proud of from his NFL debut. Of the three rookie quarterbacks who made their first starts on Sunday, it would be hard to say he wasn't the most impressive. Yet with everybody else taking notice, Jones seemingly isn't ready for the compliments just yet.

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Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at abarth@985TheSportsHub.com.