The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Mac Jones Nails Down QB2 Job in Jax

Posted on | August 18, 2024 | Comments Off on Mac Jones Nails Down QB2 Job in Jax

You don’t care about football and, at a certain level, neither do I, but the NFL saga of quarterback Mac Jones has fascinated me ever since he was a first-round draft pick for the New England Patriots in 2021. That followed Mac’s undefeated, record-setting National Championship season at Alabama and, in retrospect, can we all agree that season was the pinnacle of Nick Saban’s tenure as head coach in Tuscaloosa? During the 2020 season, Mac completed more than 77% of his passes for 4,500 yards and 41 touchdowns. What happened to Mac in New England is a long, sad story of a legendary franchise in disarray (see “‘The Patriot Way’ Has Turned Toxic,” December 7, 2023). That’s why I was overjoyed in March when Mac was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars — the situation in New England was irretrievable, and Jacksonville is Mac’s hometown.

Jones is now a rehabilitation project, frankly, and he could not have asked for a better place to do it. Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson is himself a former quarterback, who spent most of his 12-year NFL career as a backup, so he has a high degree of empathy for a player in Mac’s situation. Furthermore — and this is crucial — there is no doubt who QB1 is in Jacksonville. Trevor Lawrence was the No. 1 draft pick in 2021, the same year the Patriots got Jones at No. 15 overall and, despite Lawrence’s woeful rookie season (during Urban Meyer’s disastrous tenure as Jaguars head coach), he has flourished the past two seasons under Pederson.

Two years ago, Trevor led Jacksonville to the AFC South title, and a first-round playoff victory over the Los Angeles Chargers, before losing in the divisional round to the Kansas City Chiefs. Last year, after a strong start, the Jaguars faded down the stretch and missed the playoffs, as Lawrence struggled with injuries. Now fully healthy, Trevor’s status as starting QB is beyond dispute, which means that Mac Jones doesn’t have to deal with anything like the pressure and scrutiny (and, let’s face it, hate) he endured in New England, where the legendary shadow of Tom Brady loomed so large. Still, the job as backup quarterback wasn’t just going to be handed to Jones on a silver platter. For the past three seasons, C.J. Beathard has been QB2 in Jacksonville, and if Jones wanted that job, he would have to beat out Beathard. Mac cinched it Saturday night:

Mac Jones threw for 210 yards and two touchdowns, taking a step toward formally securing Jacksonville’s backup job, and the Jaguars beat Tampa Bay 20-7 in a preseason game featuring few starters Saturday night.
Jones got the nod in place of Trevor Lawrence and completed 16 of 23 passes, including TDs to Parker Washington and Brevin Easton. He also scrambled six times, including a nifty, duck-under move on linebacker Vi Jones in the second quarter to avoid a sack.
“Just got to keep carrying the momentum,” Jones said. “It’s a one-week season; everyone always says that. The preseason, too. You’ve got to stack good games and move on to the next game.”
Jones’ best throws went for scores. He hit Washington in stride on a third-and-17 play for 25 yards and a 7-0 lead that capped a 17-play drive. Washington finished with three receptions for 38 yards a week after returning a kickoff 73 yards against Kansas City.
Jones returned in the fourth quarter after C.J. Beathard (groin) was ruled out and lofted a perfect pass to Easton for a 31-yard score. Jones finished with a QB rating of 127.1. Beathard was 5 of 7 for 40 yards and was sacked three times.
“I thought overall Mac played a solid football game,” coach Doug Pederson said. “He was obviously into it. You saw his intensity out there. Made some great throws. Just led the team like you expected. … He loves playing. He loves playing the game and he did some great things.”

Although the severity of Beathard’s injury was not disclosed, the fact that Jones came back on in the fourth quarter and quickly produced a touchdown — which, hey, isn’t that what a backup QB needs to do? — can be fairly regarded as putting a lock on the job. Besides the unknown status of Beathard due to his injury, Pederson (and Jacksonville GM Trent Baalke) must also consider the potential demand for Mac’s services elsewhere around the league. For example, when the Minnesota Vikings lost first-round rookie QB J.J. McCarthy to a season-ending injury last week, several commentators suggested the Vikings might trade for Jones. And there might be other teams interested in a young veteran quarterback who, now that he’s escaped the gloom of New England, is once again showing the abilities that made him a first-round draft pick three years ago. By August 27, NFL teams have to cut their roster down to 53 players, and it’s generally agreed that the Jags will only keep two QBs on their active roster. The hope would be that they can cut QB3, then resign him to the practice squad after he clears waivers. But what are the chances that Jacksonville can successfully make that maneuver with Mac Jones? Not good, whereas C.J. Beathard almost certainly would.

At this point — with one preseason game remaining against the Falcons — it looks like Mac Jones will be QB2 for the Jaguars, and that’s exactly where he wants to be. Jacksonville’s offensive line seems rather porous, so Mac can watch from the sidelines while Trevor Lawrence gets blitzed and sacked repeatedly. It’s a nice gig, being a backup quarterback, and my hope is that Jacksonville can amass a winning record and Trevor can stay healthy, at least until November 5. That’s the NFL trade deadline, and I wouldn’t want to see Mac’s rehabilitation get interrupted by having the Jags trade him to some other team in need of an experienced QB. No, let Jones stay in Jacksonville, and let the Jaguars stack up a 6-3 or 7-2 record before the trade deadline, but if something happens to Trevor Lawrence after November 5? Well, Mac needs to be ready. Because that’s the name of the game as a backup QB — be ready.



 

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