New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones received a ton of criticism for his performance over the last couple of weeks, but Josh McDaniels has his back. The former Patriots offensive coordinator turned Las Vegas Raiders coach had some kind words to say of the player he coached for one season.
Ahead of Sunday's matchup between the Patriots and Raiders, McDaniels insisted that Jones is better than the player he's shown to be recently, praising his poise.
“He’s a very talented player,” McDaniels told reporters Thursday. “Accuracy has always been a huge part of his game, touch, anticipation. He has all those things at a very high level. They’ve battled the same bug we’ve battled honestly, with the turnovers and losing opportunities through change of possession. So, I’m sure that’s something that they’re going to work hard at limiting and getting rid of, and it’s the same thing we’re talking about.
“But this is a guy who’s a very capable passer in every situation. He’s played big in big games. He’s battled against really good teams, made some high-level throws and hung in there. Very tough in the pocket, gets hit and gets right up and goes to the next play. So, a lot of respect for him, a lot of admiration for what he did when I was there. It’ll be a big challenge for us this week.”
Jones looks much different as of late compared to when he was being coached by McDaniels in 2021. He's committed six turnovers over the last two weeks, with three of those giveaways resulting in touchdowns for the opponent, furthering his disappointing play from his second season in 2022. In 2021, Jones threw for 3,801 yards, 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, resulting in a second-place finish in Offensive Rookie of the Year voting.
Despite Jones' recent struggles, he'll still be the Patriots' starting quarterback in Week 6.
Josh McDaniels also dished out high praise for the Patriots
In addition to praising Jones, McDaniels had some kind words to say about his former employer, who he beat last season in dramatic fashion.
“A lot of different things, a lot different challenges,” McDaniels said of how the Patriots are different from last year. “This is a different team than we played last December by far. Our team is different, theirs is too. They’ve got different coaches. This will be a big week of preparation for us.”
If you recall, the Raiders knocked off the Patriots last season when Jakobi Meyers' lateral to Jones was intercepted by Chandler Jones, allowing the Raiders' defensive end to score the game-winning touchdown with time expiring.
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