Mac Jones, Patriots offense did not look comfortable in preseason finale

BOSTON -- The Patriots are out of preseason tune-ups. Unfortunately, the offense looks like they could use a few more.

Mac Jones and New England's offensive starters played into the second quarter of Friday night's third and final preseason game against the Raiders -- a 23-6 New England loss in Las Vegas. Starters usually don't play that much in the final preseason tilt -- the Raiders sat most of theirs -- but the Patriots offense has needed every rep they can get ahead of the regular season.

That extra playing time on Friday night almost seemed like a punishment handed out by Bill Belichick, as New England's first-teamers were outplayed by Las Vegas' backups. The offense's night started with a three-and-out, which ended when Jones was sacked for a 13-yard loss on third down. The second drive ended when Jones threw a horrendous interception over the middle. Another three-and-out followed on the third offensive possession.

The offense did move the ball downfield on their fourth and final drive of the game, with Jones completing some big boy passes at the start of the second quarter. But the Patriots had to settle for a field goal after a Jones-to-DeVante Parker touchdown was taken off the board because Parker was flagged for Offensive Pass Interference in the end zone.     

Jones finished the night 9-for-13 for 71 yards and a really bad interception. He also had a nice 13-yard scamper to pick up a first down, but was sacked twice and hit four times during his time on the field.

Most concerning is the fact that Jones did not look comfortable in the pocket, even when the offensive line was giving him time to operate. He rolled out of a few clean pockets which led to disaster; first running into a sack to end New England's first offensive drive, and then a retreat that forced him to throw it away on his final pass of the night.

"I've got to do a better job of stepping up and delivering the throws. I've got to do a better job of just stepping up in the pocket and getting the ball out instead of running around and putting my line in a bad position," Jones said after Friday's loss.   

And then there was the pick. It came when the offense was showing signs of life, overcoming a first-and-20 thanks to some quick passes to Jakobi Meyers and Jonnu Smith on first and second down, respectively, before Jones ripped off a solid 13-yard run to move the chains for the first time of the evening.

A few plays later, Jones was given a good amount of time to go through his reads, and checked down to Kendrick Bourne over the middle. Unfortunately, there were six Raiders in Bourne's vicinity.

Jones somehow didn't see linebacker Luke Masterson, and hit him right in the chest for an easy interception.

That toss probably would have been picked off even if Masterson didn't come down with it. And it didn't make anyone feel any better when Jones and the offense followed it up with a three-and-out on their next possession.

Mac and company looked a bit better on their final drive of the night, at least. Jones hit Nelson Agholor for a nice 13-yard pickup on a second-and-9, and he delivered a beautiful dart to Bourne on a fourth-and-3 to keep the drive going. He followed it up with a nice running throw to Hunter Henry for 16 yards to set the Patriots up at the Las Vegas 14.

Jones threw a nice back-shoulder strike to Parker in the end zone a few plays later, but the touchdown was taken off the board when Parker was flagged for OPI. Facing a third-and-13 on the next play, Jones bolted from the pocket and had to throw it away. The Patriots had to settle for a Nick Folk field goal to end the drive.

That was how Jones' night and preseason ended. With the quarterback running around when he didn't really have to. He was visibly flustered on the sideline throughout the game.

The second-year QB finished his preseason 13-for-21 for 132 yards and an interception. He played with Patriots starters, mostly against opposing backups.

The Patriots' starting offense showed very little throughout the preseason. They struggled against their own defense in camp, and then they struggled against Carolina and Las Vegas backups. There has been no continuity, no chemistry, and -- most alarming -- no real improvement from the unit throughout summer.

With Matt Patricia and Joe Judge now filling the roles left by Josh McDaniels' departure, the concerns are very real for the Patriots offense heading into the regular season. They now have two weeks to figure it out before games start to count.

"We're trying to get it all together and it's going to happen," said Jones. "We want to go out there and execute better. That's all it comes down to. Individually, I think we can all play better. Once that happens, collectively it'll look a lot better."