Patriots: 3 Mac Jones plays that show fans shouldn’t be worried about rookie QB

The New England Patriots came up short against Tua Tagovailoa and the Miami Dolphins in their home opener, but they can, and should, take solace in the fact that first-round pick and potential franchise quarterback Mac Jones looked exactly as good as we all thought he would be, overcoming the haters and doubters in the process.

There’s a reason he’s the new favorite to win Offensive Rookie of the Year, after all.

Jones set a new record for completion percentage by a rookie in their first start with a minimum of 30 pass attempts. Jones went 29-of-39 and did almost everything he could to pick up his first win in the pros.

But a couple fumbles proved too detrimental, and the offense still has some kinks to work out. Still, Jones’ touch down the field looked impeccable, and it can be argued he had the best Week 1 performance of any rookie quarterback given how he was able to avoid the turnover bug.

We’ll take it! And fans should be intrigued with what’s to come.

Patriots: 3 great Mac Jones plays from his debut

3. Mac delivers a strike under pressure

One of the biggest questions that Jones had attached to him coming out of Alabama was his ability to deliver the ball under pressure. With NFL talent at quite literally every single position on that offense, could Jones be able to get the ball out with a next-level pass rush bearing down on him?

Based on this game, it looks he can. Down by seven in the third quarter and facing a 2nd and 15, Miami was able to get linebacker Sam Eguavoen free on a blitz. Despite that pressure right in his grill, Jones was able to get off a fantastic pass to Nelson Agholor for the first down.

Mac Jones looked fine under pressure.

Jones looked like he was dropping back with a perfectly clean pocket for how effortlessly he flicked that pass out to Agholor. That’s the type of throw you’re not used to seeing from a rookie in their first start.

This also shows a willingness to challenge the defense downfield, which New England looked very hesitant to do last season. How many games they win will be a mystery, but the offense looked much better than it did last year.