Mac Jones puts critics to bed during the Patriots' latest practice with the Packers

Since the Patriots chose to draft Mac Jones with the 15th overall pick in the 2021 draft, the quarterback has not been able to escape harsh criticism and questioning regarding his skillset and potential in the NFL.

Although it's typical of any New England quarterback during the Bill Belichick era, Jones has seemed to get hit with more scrutiny in his first two seasons than any other quarterback in recent memory.

Other than those who questioned his true potential after he accomplished a successful rookie season and brought the energy back into the Patriots' offense at the same time, the piling on became even more common as the young quarterback struggled throughout the 2022 season.

Not all blame for the disastrous year can be put on one man alone, aka Matt Patricia, but the overwhelming amount of damage the inexperienced offensive coach caused during his one season as Josh Mcdaniels' replacement is difficult to brush over or even ignore.

Jones certainly deserves some blame for his poor performance during the season, outside of the injury factor that likely contributed. However, coaching matters and this was a prime example of that, unfortunately, at the Patriots' expense.

Now that he's preparing for his third season with a third offensive coordinator, there are still a lot of skeptics questioning if Jones can genuinely be the quarterback of the future for the Patriots. Because he performed so poorly in 2022, many have concluded that he isn't a talented player and will ultimately flop during what has been said to be the most challenging strength of schedule for the upcoming season.

Since that has become a common theme among those discussing his potential performance come September, a more specific criticism that has caught on proclaims Jones to have what many refer to as a "noodle arm," or in other words; he's incapable of making passes longer than what would make him a "dink and dunk" quarterback.

Although there is plenty of tape out there proving this to be inaccurate, the talking point continues to this day.

Luckily for him, he has continued to quiet the critics, with the latest coming from the second day of joint practices between the Patriots and the Packers earlier this week.

Amid the offense's best practice of the summer, Jones threw a 50-yard pass for a touchdown to DeVante Parker. Reporters who witnessed the play stated that nearly all of the quarterback's teammates ran onto the field to celebrate.

The last viral moment of a deep pass from Jones came last month when a video was posted on Twitter showing him throwing a 70-yard touchdown pass to a young fan during an event with the YMCA.

It was the perfect reminder to all the doubters that he is, in fact, capable of making those explosive plays, even if it is just in practice. Hopefully, he will have more opportunities to show that skill on the field during the 2023 season, that is, if the offensive line will allow him enough time to do so.