Bill Belichick tried to trade Mac Jones this offseason
According to Mike Florio as per a source with knowledge of the situation, the New England Patriots and Bill Belichick shopped Mac Jones this offseason. Wow. This is massive, massive news that came out earlier on Tuesday.
This, from Florio, is included in the article:
"Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Belichick has shopped Jones to multiple teams during the 2023 offseason.The full list of potential destinations isn’t known. The teams mentioned as potential destinations were the Raiders, Texans, Buccaneers, and Commanders.Obviously, a trade hasn’t occurred yet. That doesn’t mean it won’t happen. A team hoping to draft a quarterback could pivot to Jones, if that team doesn’t get the guy it wants."
So, let’s talk about this some more. Mac Jones was drafted in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draf and beat out Cam Newton for the Patriots’ starting job during his rookie season. Jones played well, helped lead a top 10 scoring offense en route to a 10-7 record and a playoff berth.
The Patriots did get beaten badly in the Wild Card round, but still, it seemed like things were trending up, but Bill Belichick didn’t exactly put the team in a good position to succeed in 2022, and that’s when things fell of the rails.
Now, according to Florio, Belichick has shopped Mac Jones and he specifically mentions the Raiders, Texans, Buccaneers, and Commanders.
The Raiders are an obvious choice as that’s essentially the Patriots 2.0 ever since Josh McDaniels took over. The Texans, Buccaneers, and Commanders have long-term QB questions themselves, so it’s no surprise that those four teams would be mentioned.
Belichick shopping Jones means one thing; he doesn’t believe in him as “the guy” for the New England Patriots. That’s what this means.
Perhaps the Patriots should be looking for a QB upgrade. I was calling for one all offseason and think Lamar Jackson makes a ton of sense.
Mac Jones seems to be on thin ice in New England.