Doug Pederson took an uncalled for shot at the Patriots over Mac Jones

Preseason performance might generally be taken with a grain of salt no matter what player or team is being talked about, but Mac Jones's impressive showing over the last three weeks in Jacksonville has raised many questions regarding his trade from New England.

Despite his struggle-filled season in 2023, which ultimately led to more losses than wins due to his careless hand creating more than enough turnovers, Jones could have been utilized in a backup role as a more veteran presence beyond Jacoby Brissett.

With Bill Belichick out the door and Jerod Mayo in as the new head coach, along with a new staff, there's no reason to believe that the fourth-year quarterback wouldn't have benefitted personally and professionally. We're seeing it firsthand with his change of scenery to the AFC South.

He's shined throughout the preseason and looked every bit the rookie seen during the 2021 season, a year in which Jones was named as an alternate to the Pro Bowl and led the Patriots to the playoffs after missing it the season before.

Now, he's backing up Trevor Lawrence to prove his worth and revamp his reputation in hopes of potentially landing a starting job somewhere next season. Because of that effort, he won over his teammates and new coaches to the point of Doug Pederson taking a shot at Jones' former team after the Jaguars' latest win on Friday night.

Doug Pederson's shot at the Patriots doesn't apply to the new regime hoping to create a current "Patriot Way"

After another stand-out showing in the preseason finale, with Jones completing 13/18 passes for 113 yards and a touchdown, Pederson raved about how well the quarterback has been playing since the team traded for him earlier this offseason.

Within his comments, though, was an unnecessary shot at the Patriots regarding how Jones' career looked during his last two years in New England, which was a rude wake-up call for the state of the longtime dominant franchise.

"Mac has played extremely well in the last couple of weeks and has really bought into what we do. He’ll still revert back to his Patriots ways every now and then, and we have to remind him he’s in Jacksonville. But he’s done a good job managing and running the offense, getting everybody involved. He sees the field well, throws a good ball, so he’s done a good job."

While there are plenty of arguments to be made regarding Jones' time with the Patriots and who is to blame for his unfortunate downfall, Pederson's comments about him "revert[ing] back to his Patriots ways" are more of a shot at Belichick than the current staff leading the Patriots.

Mayo was there throughout the quarterback's tenure and has spoken about how his circumstances were not favorable or fair for most of his time, and even toyed with the idea of keeping him on the roster for the 2024 season.

Although that didn't happen and he was instead traded to his hometown team, Mayo has no responsibility in how Jones' career transpired nor was he involved in any of the decisions that hindered his growth and development in the NFL., and he was instead traded to his hometown team, Mayo has no responsibility for how Jones' career transpired,

He's made it clear he doesn't want to replicate what happened with Jones, and it's believed that might be why he's reluctant to name Drake Maye the starter.

Because there's a new regime in Foxboro, taking shots at the "Patriot Way" isn't relevant anymore, and it might be fair to assume that Pederson thought it was less harmful to his reputation if he took a shot at the team as a whole, rather than singling out Belichick for his role in the matter.

Regardless, the Patriots can use this as bulletin board material if they choose, as it is indicative of the current state of the team for an opposing head coach to take a shot like this in a public sphere. Or they could ignore it since it doesn't apply to the current coaching staff.

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