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Zolak & Bertrand

Could this cornerback be a surprise cut by the Patriots?

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On Monday’s edition of Zolak & Bertrand, Scott Zolak weighed-in on whether Jack Jones could be a surprise cut for the Patriots.

Oct 24, 2022; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots cornerback Jack Jones (13) celebrates during the first half against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports

Oct 24, 2022; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots cornerback Jack Jones (13) celebrates during the first half against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports

I don’t see it that way…

Marc Bertrand: Would Jack Jones constitute a surprise cut for you, Zo?

Scott Zolak: Yes.

Marc Bertrand: What do you think’s going on with him?

Scott Zolak: I think it’s like Zappe. I think they’re trying to get him as many reps as they can because he is still a second-year player.

Marc Bertrand: He was playing the other night…

Scott Zolak: Still a second-year player, got stiffed arm, had some issues the other night. Got beat on a deep cross but he bounced back nice. Had a couple of sticks after that. I thought he recovered well for the remainder of the game. Now, he’s playing against lesser competition, but still watching him move out there… he’s one of your better corners.

Marc Bertrand: Did you catch his comments last week?

Scott Zolak: Which ones?

Marc Bertrand: Well, he was asked if his legal issue and situation were a distraction, and he said, I mean, at times it can be difficult, but I try not to let the outside affect what’s going on, on the field. So he admits that there is some level of distraction. At times it has been difficult. He also was asked about his availability for week one and he said, I hope so. I mean, I hope I’m available for week one. Right now, it’s just day to day.

Scott Zolak: Well, that’s the thing, too, are they anticipating something like tp where the league could potentially step-in. I’m sure they have communication with the league. Don’t you have to have communication with the league? The league just can’t say… well, we can’t comment. It’s an ongoing investigation. It’s nice that the team can say that.

Marc Bertrand: That’s typically what they do, though…

Scott Zolak: Unless there’s history, they’re looking at it. And if there’s a plea deal or something, I don’t know. I am not the legal expert. I’m not a lawyer, not running the team. But to me, it looks like they’re planning to have him.

Marc Bertrand: Outside of cases of direct violence against another individual. I mean, they’ve had domestic incidents where they’ve stepped in right away.

Scott Zolak: See, I don’t think they played him extensively the other night thinking, oh, we need to find out what we have in this player. I think it’s we need to rep the hell out of this player because we may be in a position where we potentially don’t have him and we’re going to give him as many reps as he can. So we’re going to have to lean on him at some point this year.

 

FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS - OCTOBER 09: Jack Jones #13 of the New England Patriots celebrates after an interception during the first quarter against the Detroit Lions at Gillette Stadium on October 09, 2022 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Nick Grace/Getty Images)

FOXBORO, MA: Jack Jones of the New England Patriots celebrates after an interception against the Detroit Lions at Gillette Stadium on Oct. 9, 2022. (Nick Grace/Getty Images)

Listen to the full segment!

Tyler Milliken started out at the Sports Hub as an intern in 2020 for the Zolak & Bertrand program before eventually becoming the associate producer in late 2021. He often joins the baseball conversation on Zolak & Bertrand and is a contributor to The Baseball Hour throughout the season. Along with that, he has been a co-host on DraftKings Name Redacted Podcast with Jared Carrabis for the last two years, where they cover everything going on with the Red Sox. Born and raised in Brockton, he reps the city proudly.

Zolak & Bertrand: Watch all 14 of Mac Jones' 2022 touchdowns

Last season was a significant step-back for Mac Jones, as he threw for only 14 touchdowns in 2022 after reaching the 22 benchmark in his rookie season.

Lots of blame was fairly targeted at Matt Patricia and Joe Judge, who formulated a disaster of an offense from the very first day of training camp. It only got worse as the season went along, with Jones barking at Patricia on the sideline and looking visibly frustrated. Not to mention, a high-ankle sprain that stopped Jones from starting 3 games.

As Scott Zolak said yesterday, so far this preseason it has looked like Mac Jones is transforming back into his rookie season form. A big part of that is Bill O’Brien returning as the Patriots offensive coordinator again. He’s seemed a lot more confident over the last few weeks, along with a guy like Kendrick Bourne who was in the dog house last year.

Throughout the offseason, there was constant back and forth on whether Jones and Belichick’s relationship was in good standing. As a show, we speculated on a regular basis when Belichick would just refer to Jones using his name again. Since camp rolled around, it’s been clear every day that there was no quarterback competition.

No Bailey Zappe fever. Even with all the Malik Cunningham hype, it was always clear that the Patriots viewed him in more of a gadget and wide receiver role. Trace McSorley has been an afterthought both on the practice fields and in preseason games.

Still, even the biggest Jones’ fans admit that he didn’t play well enough despite the circumstances last year. It wasn’t the level of play you expect from a franchise quarterback. If he can’t take the proper steps this season, his future in the NFL will become a serious question.

So let’s take a look back at all of Jones’ touchdowns from last season. Hopefully a year from now this total has at least doubled.

  • 1. Mac Jones to Ty Montgomery

    After the Patriots offense started slow in Week 1 last season, they finally got on board as Mac Jones hit Ty Montgomery for a 6-yard touchdown in the 3rd quarter.

  • 2. Mac Jones to Nelson Agholor

    In the second quarter, Mac Jones and Nelson Agholor connected on the rare deep pass. At the time, many people called this the catch of the season. By far the best catch of Agholor’s time in New England.

  • 3. Mac Jones to Jakobi Meyers

    After the toughest stretch of Jones’ career, as he battled a high-ankle sprain and Zappe fever reached its peak, it wasn’t the smoothest return. His first touchdown back went to his old security blanket in Jakobi Meyers on a 5-yard pass.

  • 4. Mac Jones to Rhamondre Stevenson

    Rhamondre Stevenson was the engine for the Patriots offseason, and that included this great one-handed grab against the Colts. It set the tone for the Patriots most dominant win of the season.

  • 5/6. Mac Jones to Nelson Agholor… and then Hunter Henry

    By far the best performance from Jones all season. He was 28 for 39 passing and accumulated 382 yards in the air. No interceptions were thrown either, just touchdown passes to Agholor and Henry.

  • 7. Mac Jones to Marcus Jones

    One of the highlights of last season was Marcus Jones contributing in each facet of the game. That included a 48-yard touchdown from Jones where he absolutely blitzed the Bills defense. It felt like a potential turning point for the Patriots offense, but it ended up being the last touchdown they scored that game.

  • 8/9. Mac Jones to Kendrick Bourne… and Jakobi Meyers

    https://twitter.com/NateAdams5k/status/1606771774401794050?s=20

    A late rally from the Patriots offense and Mac Jones allowed the offense to put two touchdowns on the board. The first one to Bourne, which was a flashback to the chemistry him and Jones had the previous season. Then a Hail Mary on 3rd and 29 that Meyers came down with after a deflection off Scotty Washington’s hands.

  • 10/11. Mac Jones to Tyquan Thornton… and Jakobi Meyers

    With the Patriots playoff hopes on the line, Mac Jones battled back from being down 14-7 to pull off a 23-21 win. Jones and Thornton connected on their first touchdown together and Thornton’s first score at Gillette Stadium. Then another classic Jones to Meyer hookup for the game-winning touchdown.

  • 12/13/14. Mac Jones to Jakobi Meyers… twice to DeVante Parker

    As the Patriots fought for their playoff hopes, Mac Jones threw 3 touchdowns with 2 coming via nice grabs from Parker. He also threw 3 interceptions as the offense desperately tried to claw its way into the game. It once again showed the desperate state of the Patriots offense.

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