Mac Jones named Patriots captain for first time

BOSTON -- For the first of what the Patriots hope will be many times, Mac Jones has been named a team captain.

At the end of his press conference in Florida on Wednesday, Bill Belichick announced the six captains for the 2022 season. Quarterback Mac Jones was among them.

"Yeah, I think it's really cool," Jones said shortly after the public announcement. "I think I have a lot of work to do. I want to become an even better leader, and I think we have great guys around us that make everything better. So great coaches, great organization, and we just gotta build, and I'm gonna learn from the older guys like I did when I first got here and continue to do that. And hopefully some of the younger guys can come to me with, whether that be issues and things that they want to get fixed or things that they're struggling with, I'll be happy to help anybody on our team.

The complete list of captains includes Jones, Matthew Slater, Devin McCourty, Ja'Whaun Bentley, Deatrich Wise, and David Andrews.

Slater and McCourty are team captains for the 12th time of their careers, while Andrews is a captain for the sixth consecutive year.

Bentley served as a team captain in 2020, with Dont'a Hightower reclaiming his captaincy the following year. 

Like Jones, Wise is a first-time team captain.

Jones was one of four team captains for Alabama in 2020, when he helped lead the Crimson Tide to an undefeated season and a national championship.