Felger & Mazz: Mac Jones is ‘broken, busted and fractured’ after Saints loss
The New England Patriots suffered a brutal blowout loss to the New Orleans Saints this week, 34-0. This loss follows a similar result from the week before when the Patriots lost 38-3 against the Dallas Cowboys. The Pats haven’t scored an offensive touchdown since Week 3 when they beat the New York Jets.
On Monday’s Felger & Mazz program, the guys react to the horrific Patriots defeat. Is Mac Jones broken? Has the game passed Bill Belichick by?
FULL CONVERSATION
Mazz:Ā Look, I rule out nothing. I think the Patriots are broken internally. I think they’ve been broke for some time. I’m not sure Belichick ever wanted Mac Jones.Ā
I think last year was a train wreck. And we can say it was good for the first couple of games, but that stuff comes back under duress. So, any resentment that is still there will come out.Ā
I don’t have any doubt that the other players on the team look at Mac Jones and say, “You’re killing us. You’re not good enough.”
They don’t believe in the quarterback. I’m not sure they have a quarterback that the team can believe in, which is another problem in and of itself. And the stuff in practice, as you’re saying it, I’m just thinking out loud. Did anyone defend Jones, including the coach?
Felger:Ā After the Sauce Gardner thing?Ā
Mazz:Ā No, I just think there’s always been a problem between the coach and the quarterback. I think that’s what’s at the heart of it. And so, if the other guys are looking at it and saying the coach doesn’t believe in the quarterback, then it opens the door for them to go off on the quarterback, too.Ā
Felger:Ā Well, I wonder if Bill’s hurting himself by sticking with the quarterback too much. It’s obvious they need to take a breather from Mac Jones right now.Ā
He’s broken. He’s busted. He’s absolutely busted and fractured!Ā
It’s permeating the team. The team has to sit him. They have to. You can’t keep going into these games just to pull him by the third quarter. That is dysfunctional. They have to sit Mac Jones.Ā
I’ve got a sense that Bill, that big freaking baby, is now saying, “Oh, now you want me to bench him? I’m not going to bench him.”Ā
Similar to the Cam Newton year when it was obvious that Newton should have been taking a seat. They should’ve been trying to see what Jarrett Stidham had. But that’s not the point.Ā
The point is that things are clearly broken with your starting quarterback, and people are calling for you to make a change.Ā
SEGMENT AUDIO
Ryan Beaton is a producer for 985thesportshub.com. You can follow Ryan at @ry_beaton on Twitter.
From bad to worse: 5 takeaways from the Patriots' shutout loss to the Saints
QB play
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – OCTOBER 08: Mac Jones #10 of the New England Patriots looks on during the second quarter against the New Orleans Saints at Gillette Stadium on October 08, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
The state of the Patriots’ quarterback room is not good. Obvious, I know. But it’s not something we’re going to skip talking about.
We’ll start withĀ Mac Jones. The issues that hurt him last week were front and center once again against the Saints. He was reacting to pressure that wasn’t there, his footwork was erratic, and he made panicked decisions.
After the game, Jones was asked if he feels ‘sped up,’ a term that relates to quarterbacks overthinking and/or rushing their in-play process – something usually brought on by sustained poor pass protection and repeated hits.
“It’s the NFL, they’ve got good defensive linemen that are coming every play and they’re trying to hit the quarterback. So, I’ve got to do a better job,” Jones said when asked after the game if he felt sped up.
The thing about quarterbacks being sped-up is the longer they stay that way, the worse it gets and the harder it can be to snap out of it. Right now, Jones seems a long way from being comfortable in the pocket again.
Bailey ZappeĀ came into the game in the third quarter. He didn’t look as sped up as Jones but his accuracy was an issue. Multiple times, he overthrew open receivers as he finished the game completing 3-of-9 passes.
The line of scrimmage
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – OCTOBER 08: The New England Patriots and the New Orleans Saints line up before a play during the first half at Gillette Stadium on October 08, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Malhotra/Getty Images)
Both on offense and defense, the Patriots struggled at the line of scrimmage. There was no push by the offensive or defensive line, which made it difficult for the Patriots to establish any sort of momentum.
We’ve already touched a bit on the offensive line issues in this game. Jones was pressured regularly with the right tackle spot once again being an issue. DespiteĀ Riley Reiff, who was the starting right tackle at the beginning of camp, being activated from IR, he only subbed in at guard whileĀ Vederian LoweĀ played wire-to-wire at right tackle.
Things weren’t much better on the ground. Running room was scarce, as the Patriots ran for just 2.5 yards per carry. New England’s longest run of the day was eight yards.
On defense, the Patriots failed to pressure quarterbackĀ Derek CarrĀ for much of the game. He was hit just four times, and sacked only twice. The absence ofĀ Matthew JudonĀ was certainly felt.
Third down woes
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – OCTOBER 08: New England Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien and Mac Jones #10 of the New England Patriots look on during the first quarter against the New Orleans Saints at Gillette Stadium on October 08, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
Back to the Patriots’ offense here, and situational football. Specifically, third downs.
The Patriots went 1-for-14 on third down in this game. That’s a conversion rate of 7.1 percent. It’s the most third down attempts they’ve had in a game under Bill Belichick while only converting one or fewer attempts, and the second-worst third-down percentage in a game under Belichick period, outside of a game when they went 0-for-11 against Miami in 2017.
It’s not so much that the Patriots were bad at converting on third downs, so much as it was an issue of not setting up manageable third downs. The average distance go to on third downs for the Patriots in this game was 6.4 yards, with the average distance to go in the first half being 7.7 yards. It’s nearly impossible to win a football game when trying to convert from that far behind the sticks, that often.
Special teams struggles
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – OCTOBER 08: Jabrill Peppers #5 of the New England Patriots muffs a punt during the first half against the New Orleans Saints at Gillette Stadium on October 08, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
We’ve touched on offense. We’ve touched on defense. We also have to touch on special teams.
The Patriots struggled in multiple phases of the kicking game on Sunday. Rookie kickerĀ Chad Ryland missed another field goal, this time from 48 yards. With that miss, Ryland is now 4-of-8 to start his NFL career.
On one hand, seven of Ryland’s eight kicks have been from 48 yards or longer. He hasn’t exactly been put in for chip shots. At the same time, part of the reason Ryland was drafted as high as he was (fourth round, as the second kicker off the board) is his ability to hit field goals from distance.
Rookie punterĀ Bryce BaringerĀ struggled early, mis-hitting his first two punts before settling in. Still, those two ended up being costly as it allowed the Saints advantageous field position to build a lead. His first punt – which went just 26 yards before going out of bounds and set New Orleans up at the New England 40-yard line, included a bad snap from long snapperĀ Joe Cardona.
It wasn’t a great game for the returners either.Ā Ty MontgomeryĀ ran two kickoffs out of the end zone and failed to get to the 25 on either one, andĀ Jabrill PeppersĀ fair-caught one punt inside the five (instead of letting it roll into the end zone for a touchback) and fumbled another while trying to pick it up off a bounce.
What’s next?
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – OCTOBER 08: Keion White #99 of the New England Patriots pursues Kendre Miller #25 of the New Orleans Saints during the fourth quarter at Gillette Stadium on October 08, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
Where do the Patriots go from here? There are a lot of big picture questions about the direction of the organization that will be had in the coming days. On a more micro level though, there is one adjustment the Patriots can make right now that should help them in the long term – play the kids.
At 1-4, the playoffs are now a longshot for the Patriots. It’s not unrealistic to say this team should at least be glancing at next year. In that regard, they should start to figure out what they have in some of these younger players. That goes fromĀ Keion White – who should see an increased role followingĀ Matthew Judon’sĀ injury, to players likeĀ Ameer Speed. The sixth-round corner had played exclusively on special teams through the first four weeks, but saw some time at cornerback late in this game.
Pretty much any player from the last two draft classes falls into the category. Will that become a reality? We’ll see.
