BOSTON -- Bill Belichick was supposed to meet with the media on Saturday, after the conclusion of the entire NFL Draft. Instead, the Patriots head coach opted for a late-night session with New England reporters on Friday evening, meeting with the media around midnight after the third round of the draft had ended.
And while the three new draft picks -- Christian Gonzalez, Keion White, Marte Mapu -- were the primary focus of the conversation, a somewhat tense back-and-forth with a reporter over Mac Jones became the biggest story from the session.
The question came from Greg Bedard of Boston Sports Journal, who used the rare offseason opportunity to speak with Belichick to ask the coach if he'd like to clear up any of the speculation and reporting that's been happening over the past several months regarding the Patriots shopping quarterback Mac Jones around the league.
The exchange went like this:
Q: Excuse the question, but I'm going to assume that we're not getting you tomorrow after the draft from what we've been told. So I wanted to give you an opportunity to -- if you wanted to -- to clarify sort of your feelings about Mac Jones. There have been some well-published reports that you were shopping him, that weren't refuted by anyone from the Patriots. And also, you know, Cam Newton, when he started in 2020, you declared him your quarterback. After you drafted Mac Jones [in 2021], you declared [Newton] your quarterback. At the league meetings, you didn't mention Mac by name. I'm just wondering how do you feel about Mac? Is he your quarterback right now? How do you view him going into year three?
A: "Yeah, well I'm not going to respond to the anonymous quotes, Greg, so."
Q: So, I mean, would you like to -- Is [Mac] your quarterback as of right now?
A: "Yeah, I mean, look, Mac's been our quarterback for two years. And as I tell the team every year, each player, each coach, we all have to reestablish and prove ourselves every year. That's what this league is. So that's for all of us. 2023 is 2023 and we'll see how '23 goes."
Q: You were very complimentary of him going into last season and the last training camp.
A: "I'm still --"
Q: Do you still view him the same way?
A: "Absolutely."
On the surface, it was not exactly an earth-shattering moment. But considering how strange this offseason has been in the Belichick-Jones department, it was at the very least a necessary step in establishing the team's position on the third-year QB.
Some of the discussion has, as Belichick noted, come from anonymous sources. Quite obviously, Belichick can't be expected to every bit of speculation in the NFL world.
But as Bedard pointed out, Belichick himself has been lukewarm at best toward Jones going back to the QB's injury and subsequent Bailey Zappe situation. The commitment was unsteady during the season, and it seemed to lessen after the year, when Belichick would only say that Jones has proven he can play in the league. When speaking with the media at the league meetings last month, Belichick said that Jones will have to earn his job like everyone else on the team.
While that is somewhat in line with the way Belichick operates, it's not at all how he's run the team at the QB position for 20-plus years. When Tom Brady was the quarterback -- even when he was facing suspension, even when he was struggling to start a season in his late 30s -- Belichick scoffed at any suggestion that he might make a QB change. When Cam Newton took over in 2020, Belichick would get visibly upset if any reporter asked about a potential change at the QB position.
So Belichick's answers and non-answers on Jones were a bit curious. And they certainly blended some believability to all of the reporting and speculation about the team potentially trying to move on from Jones.
But, with the top rounds of the draft past, with Lamar Jackson signed in Baltimore, with Jimmy Garoppolo on the Raiders, with Brian Hoyer out the door, and with OTAs just a few weeks away, the Patriots seem set roster-wise at quarterback. And while it wasn't much, Belichick's answer of "absolutely" indicates that the coach intends on relying on Jones at the most important position on the field in 2023.
What to make of Bill Belichick's comments on Mac Jones
By Michael Hurley
/ CBS Boston
BOSTON -- Bill Belichick was supposed to meet with the media on Saturday, after the conclusion of the entire NFL Draft. Instead, the Patriots head coach opted for a late-night session with New England reporters on Friday evening, meeting with the media around midnight after the third round of the draft had ended.
And while the three new draft picks -- Christian Gonzalez, Keion White, Marte Mapu -- were the primary focus of the conversation, a somewhat tense back-and-forth with a reporter over Mac Jones became the biggest story from the session.
The question came from Greg Bedard of Boston Sports Journal, who used the rare offseason opportunity to speak with Belichick to ask the coach if he'd like to clear up any of the speculation and reporting that's been happening over the past several months regarding the Patriots shopping quarterback Mac Jones around the league.
The exchange went like this:
On the surface, it was not exactly an earth-shattering moment. But considering how strange this offseason has been in the Belichick-Jones department, it was at the very least a necessary step in establishing the team's position on the third-year QB.
Some of the discussion has, as Belichick noted, come from anonymous sources. Quite obviously, Belichick can't be expected to every bit of speculation in the NFL world.
But as Bedard pointed out, Belichick himself has been lukewarm at best toward Jones going back to the QB's injury and subsequent Bailey Zappe situation. The commitment was unsteady during the season, and it seemed to lessen after the year, when Belichick would only say that Jones has proven he can play in the league. When speaking with the media at the league meetings last month, Belichick said that Jones will have to earn his job like everyone else on the team.
While that is somewhat in line with the way Belichick operates, it's not at all how he's run the team at the QB position for 20-plus years. When Tom Brady was the quarterback -- even when he was facing suspension, even when he was struggling to start a season in his late 30s -- Belichick scoffed at any suggestion that he might make a QB change. When Cam Newton took over in 2020, Belichick would get visibly upset if any reporter asked about a potential change at the QB position.
So Belichick's answers and non-answers on Jones were a bit curious. And they certainly blended some believability to all of the reporting and speculation about the team potentially trying to move on from Jones.
But, with the top rounds of the draft past, with Lamar Jackson signed in Baltimore, with Jimmy Garoppolo on the Raiders, with Brian Hoyer out the door, and with OTAs just a few weeks away, the Patriots seem set roster-wise at quarterback. And while it wasn't much, Belichick's answer of "absolutely" indicates that the coach intends on relying on Jones at the most important position on the field in 2023.
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