Mac Jones mania is now sweeping the New England Patriots and its fans after the release of quarterback  Cam Newton. Bill Belichick stayed mum on the move at first, but the Pats head honcho later on had more to say about last season's QB1.

From Belichick's first presser following the move, the coach offered his typically restrained responses to the media.

Via Josh Alper of PFT:

Belichick said he was “not going to go into the details or timing” about the decision to go with Patriots first-round pick Mac Jones as the starting quarterback because “it would take forever” to rehash everything that’s gone on since Jones joined the team. He also declined to comment about why the team did not keep Newton on hand as a backup to Jones.

But after letting the news simmer for a bit, Bill Belichick softened up (to the extent that he could at least) to offer some parting words on Cam Newton's departure.

Via The Greg Hill Show on WEEI:

“I have nothing but positive thoughts and feelings for Cam,” the Patriots coach said. “He came in here, he worked hard. He gave us everything he had. Right now, our future is going to be Mac at quarterback, and that is where we’re going to go.”

Belichick also remained cryptic on why the Patriots decided not to keep him as the backup behind Mac Jones, saying that they made the move they thought was best, while not offering much of a true answer.

“Yeah, there’s always options and a lot of different things that you give, especially this time of year with so many players available before they all hit the practice squad,” Belichick said. “But, yeah, in the end we did what we felt was best.”

Cam Newton's stint with the New England Patriots has come and gone. The Mac Jones era starts now.