Well, it was fun while it lasted. After a shocking upset over the Buffalo Bills in Week 7, the small glimmer of hope surrounding the New England Patriots was quickly destroyed by the Miami Dolphins in Week 8 thanks to a 31-17 defeat. After a relatively calm week, the future of everyone on the team, primarily Mac Jones and Bill Belichick, will once again be thrown into doubt.

As has often been the case this season, the Patriots were not as good of a team as their opponent. Jones did what he could under center, but he only threw for 161 yards and an interception (with two touchdowns as well), and wasn't able to overcome the losses of Kendrick Bourne and DeVante Parker midway through this game. Belichick's game plan was decent, but he continues to handcuff himself as the coach of this team with his poor roster-building decisions as the general manager.

And now, we are back to square one. Belichick is still on the hot seat, and Jones looks less and less like the Patriots quarterback of the future. It will be interesting to see how Belichick views New England's roster with the trade deadline approaching, and as the losses continue to pile up, it would make a lot of sense for the Pats to try to move Jones at the trade deadline.

Why the Patriots should try to move Mac Jones at the trade deadline

As much as fans want to continually place all the blame for the Patriots struggles, there's only so much he can do. Jones isn't an outrageously talented quarterback, yes, but by the end of this game, his top three wide receivers were JuJu Smith-Schuster, Demario Douglas, and Jalen Reagor. It's a miracle the Pats actually managed to score a touchdown with that trio leading the way on offense midway through the fourth quarter.

The problem for the Patriots and Jones is that they have to make some sort of decision on his future soon, and right now, it's looking like his future will not be with this team. This is only Jones' third year in the league, but New England is going to have to make a decision on the fifth-year of his rookie contract after this season, and right now, it would be a shock if they exercised that option.

Mac Jones has at least one more year to prove that he can be a starting quarterback in the NFL, but he's not going to be able to do that with this Patriots offense. He has a mediocre at best offensive line, the worst group of pass-catchers in the league, and a run game that has been practically nonexistent through eight games. Jones hasn't shown much, but not many quarterbacks would be winning with this team.

Through eight games, Jones' numbers aren't awful (173/260, 1641 YDS, 9 TD, 8 INT), but they aren't good either. Jones has upside, but he needs legitimate weapons in order to win games. That's not going to be a luxury he gets in New England apparently, and given the current state of the team, a real rebuild seems inevitable.

Moving on from Jones seems increasingly likely at some point in the future, so why not speed up the process and deal him before the NFL's upcoming trade deadline? Jones probably only has one more year with this team, and his value, while not extremely high, likely won't ever be higher than it is now. Chances are Jones will be moving on for nothing after the 2024 season if this trend of losing continues.

The Patriots are not a good team, and it's OK to admit that. Continuing to accept mediocrity won't cut it in New England, though. This is going to be the third time in the past four years that this squad has missed the playoffs, and their plan to rebuild on the fly after moving on from Tom Brady has failed spectacularly. It's time for a real rebuild, and step one involves finding the actual quarterback of the future.

At this rate, New England is likely looking at a top five draft pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, with a pair of top-tier quarterbacks in USC's Caleb Williams and North Carolina's Drake Maye expected to be available. Adding one of those guys makes sense, which is why moving on from Jones makes sense too.

The chances of a Jones trade are low, but the idea is very logical. Jones' time in New England is almost certainly running out, and as always, moving players before their expiration date is better than moving them after it. Jones probably wouldn't command much on the open market, but there are teams, such as the Minnesota Vikings or Cleveland Browns, that could realistically look to make a move for Jones.

With a rebuild on the horizon, and faith in Jones at all-time low, it suddenly seems like a good time to try to move on from the struggling quarterback. Jones has been dealt a bad hand with the Patriots, but he already doesn't have a future with this team. That's not going to change anytime soon, which is why trying to flip Mac Jones ahead of the deadline may not be such a bad idea for New England.