FOXBOROUGH – Mac Jones is already using a moment from his NFL career as motivation.

The second-year quarterback was arguably the top gunslinger out of his draft class, leading all rookies in passing yards, touchdown passes, and passer rating. Jones also led the Patriots to the playoffs, where they were crushed by the Bills, 47-17, in the opening round.

Jones has an image of himself looking deflated in the loss hung up in his locker as he begins Year 2. That isn’t the biggest thing that motivates him, though.

“I’ve always been a big fan of having motivational stuff in your locker,” Mac Jones said following the Patriots’ 20-10 preseason win over the Panthers on Friday. “My dad actually — the two things that he’s always showed me is the poem ‘Man in the Arena’ and ‘If’ by Rudyard Kipling. Those are the two that are more important to me.”

“Man in the Arena” comes from a speech that former president Theodore Roosevelt gave, which emphasizes hard work more than the result. The speech has been cited as a motivator by several athletes, including Tom Brady and LeBron James.

“If” preaches self-discipline in the face of adversity and is one of the most popular poems in the United Kingdom.

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Jones said that while last season’s loss motivates him, he still needs to do more than just look at the image every day.

“I’ve always done that, and that’s last year,” Jones continued. “But I think it’s motivation to just come in here and work every day. I do love the two poems a lot.”

Jones’ father, Gordon, was a former professional tennis player and was introduced to “If” at one of the game’s special places, leading him to share it with his son.

“That’s a big shout-out to my dad because he kind of gave me those when I was probably like 6 years old,” Mac Jones said. “He kind of explained everything to me, and as I grew, I continued to just enjoy that. Actually, the ‘If’ poem was in Wimbledon, so that’s where he learned about it in the locker room in Wimbledon. So that’s pretty cool.”

Mac Jones saw his first game action since last season’s playoff loss on Friday. He completed 4-of-8 passes for 61 yards and rushed for seven more over three drives.