"It's a massive issue" - Former NFL QB highlights issues New England might face with Mac Jones in his second year

Mac Jones and the New England Patriots will enter the 2022 NFL season with major changes to their offensive coaching staff. Long-time offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels departed the team to take a head coaching job with the Las Vegas Raiders. The Patriots then chose not to hire a traditional replacement.

NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky recently appeared on Get Up to express his concerns about how this may negatively impact Jones' development.

“I mean, there are a lot of things that are incredibly important to a young quarterback, a second-year quarterback. One of, if not the most important, is to have that same voice in your ear on a consistent basis. That guy that you're talking football to on a daily basis to help your development. A guy that can sit there and tell you what's real and what's not. Well, a guy that could sit there and tell you how they're seeing the game, what's going on, the feel of that, the development, the growth, all that stuff."

He used examples of the situation other young quarterbacks found themselves in when they broke out.

"Lamar Jackson had Greg Roman, then James Urban, their quarterback coach. Joe Burrow got Bryan Callahan as their offensive coordinator and Zach Taylor. Josh Allen aside, Ken Dorsey and Brian Daboll. Like, these guys have had these offensive-minded guys that have been around the NFL in that kind of role."

Bill Belichick and the Patriots have been known to go against traditional approaches at times. so it will be interesting to see if this one pays off for them.

Mac Jones' rookie season with the New England Patriots

New England Patriots rookie quarterback Jones

While Mac Jones was the fifth quarterback selected in the 2021 NFL Draft, he outperformed all of them by a wide margin in their rookie seasons. He helped lead the Patriots into the NFL Playoffs, making him the only rookie starting quarterback to appear in the postseason this year.

Mac Jones topped all rookie quarterbacks with a 67.6 completion percentage for 3,801 yards and 22 touchdown passes. He also ranked second with a 92.5 passer rating and 7.3 yards per completion. Jones was trailing only Trey Lance, who started just one game in the 2021 NFL season.