If you make your living as an NFL quarterback, it's kind of hard to be forgotten, especially if you come into the league with a championship pedigree. The glare of the quarterback spotlight is harsh and unrelenting, and dangerous, debilitating labels like "bust" and "has-been" are constantly looming on the horizon.
But Mac Jones is back. Sort of. The former New England #1 draft pick and Alabama star dropped off the radar when the Patriots went into full chaos and disarray mode, and the final indignity he suffered at the hands of endlessly petty NEHC Bill Belichick was an eventual trade to Jacksonville for a late-round draft pick.
Jones' unexpected resurfacing act happened in Jacksonville's second preseason game, as he threw for 210 yards and 210 TDs against the Bucs. It solidified his case to go into the season as Trevor Lawrence's backup, and if the dominoes fall a certain way it may even get him an opportunity with yet another new team.
Undoing the damage of the New England experience
The Patriots did a lot of bad things last year to turn Mac Jones into damaged goods. They changed OCs on him, then installed a defensive guy, Matt Patricia, to take the offense back to the 1950s. Jones contributed to the problem with his body language and occasional on-field antics, and the fact that he fancies himself a gunslinger didn't exactly endear him to Belichick.
Jacksonville represents a soft landing for a new start, but the big problem there is that Trevor Lawrence isn't going anywhere anytime soon. He just signed his big extension, which is what Jones was hoping to get from New England, so he's basically stuck with the Jags until he can rebuild his tattered reputation.
On paper, though, the Jags are a good situation for him. Doug Pederson has a solid reputation with quarterbacks, although he doesn't exactly soft-pedal some of his performance quotes, and his arrogance about his own offensive talent gives him a strong tendency to wear out his welcome in a hurry.
Mac Jones' major challenge
On the field, though, Jones' life gets a lot easier in Jacksonville. He'll have real weapons to use if he does see regular-season action, including Christian Kirk, Gabe Davis, and dual-threat back Travis Etienne. That represents at least two more quality receivers than he had as a Patriot, and he'll also benefit from having a real OC, rather than a defensive guy being plugged in out of sheer coaching arrogance.
All of which felt like a strong harbinger for a good performance in game two, but Jones has had his share of self-induced stumbles. Nothing like that happened against Tampa, as Jones built on a 9 for 11, 98-yard effort against the Chiefs in the Jag's first game. The difference was in the number of long throws he made, which was especially noteworthy given how much of his New England "career" he spent throwing dink-and-dunk short passes while trying to survive behind a leaky offensive line.
The money numbers that don't add up
Mac Jones' real challenge is buried in the money numbers of his contract. He's not making first-round bucks anymore, but his competition, CJ Beathard, has exactly zero dollars coming in guaranteed money. Jones is making almost 3 million, which makes him eminently cuttable as teams go to make their big final roster cuts. The Jags would be smart to hang on to Jones, though, given that they're going to need a real quarterback if Lawrence gets hurt, so there is a penny-wise/pound foolish component to this situation as well.
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