The New England Patriots are having a tough time this season. With Mac Jones seemingly losing confidence with each passing game, NFL veteran RG3 believes there is only one person to blame for it, veteran coach Bill Belichick.
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In his recent appearance at the Dan Patrick Show, the QB turned analyst was critical of Patriots coach Bill Belichick for his handling of the situation when Mac Jones, who was expected to fill Tom Brady’s shoes, was given a defensive coordinator and a special teams coach in place of an offensive coach.
Bill Belichick to Blame for Mac Jones’ Poor Performance?
ESPN football analyst Robert Griffin III addressed the New England Patriots’ struggles, attributing their 1-3 start to a lack of skill players and an absent offensive coordinator. Griffin suggested that quarterback Mac Jones’ development had been hindered despite a strong rookie year in 2021 and blamed head coach Bill Belichick.
Griffin previously went on ESPN’s ‘Get Up’ and openly criticized Belichick as the critical issue behind the Patriots’ struggles this season, shifting some of the responsibility away from Jones, who had been the subject of much criticism amidst the team’s poor start. And he re-emphasized his belief on the latest episode of The Dan Patrick Show saying how Bill should face up. After all, everyone expected Mac Jones to live up to the legacy of future Hall-of-Famer Tom Brady but he is his own person.
RGIII shed light on how “he(Belichick) should get some heat for what he’s done to Mac Jones… um honestly year two giving M Jones a defensive coordinator and a special teams coach as his offensive coordinators is the main reason Mac Jones is playing the way he is right now… Now you’re asking Mac Jones to go out there and be Patrick Mahomes and create and we saw what happened….”
In the past ESPN interview he had emphasized how the Patriots’ #QB1’s regression is a multi-year issue, saying,
“Mac Jones is not a creator, but they’re asking him to create. That’s a scheme problem. When you look at what he did in 2021, he led the No. 6 ranked offense in the NFL. Who was his coordinator? Josh McDaniels, right? One of the best OCs we’ve ever seen in this league. Now, you move forward to this year, and they have one of the worst offenses in the league. But what’s the difference?”
And even in his yesterday’s interview with Dan, RGIII couldn’t help but state that “Bill Belichick is the greatest coach of all time in the NFL”, but, “even the greatest coach of all time can mess it up and he certainly did with Mac”. After all, Jones hit his lowest with the Cowboys this weekend, a 38-3 loss with him throwing off three interceptions, which certainly led this conversation.
A Lackluster Rock-Bottom Performance by Patriots’ QB1
The New England Patriots experienced a devastating 38-3 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, which stands as Coach Bill Belichick’s most significant defeat in his illustrious career. The outcome was so one-sided that Belichick decided to substitute starting quarterback Mac Jones with backup Bailey Zappe during the third quarter. Belichick deemed it illogical to persist with Jones in the game.
Despite this setback, Belichick reaffirmed Jones as the starting quarterback for the upcoming Week 5 match against the Saints. He emphasized Jones’ overall ability to make sound decisions but also highlighted the team’s recurring issue of turnovers, with two resulting in touchdowns during this particular game. Notably, Jones faced notable challenges, failing to guide the team towards scoring a touchdown in six possessions, throwing two interceptions (one returned for a pick-six), and losing a fumble. He completed 12-of-21 passes for 150 yards.
