Tom Brady and Bill Belichick didn't exactly stand out during Sunday's widely-anticipated matchup between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New England Patriots in Foxboro. The true takeaway from this electric primetime event was how well Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones performed under pressure.
Jones went toe-to-toe with Brady, the NFL's most accomplished player, in the Patriots' 19-17 loss to the Bucs. If Nick Folk's go-ahead field goal attempt had drifted one less foot to the left, perhaps the home crowd would've left the stadium with smiles on their faces. Despite the heartbreaking loss, Pats fans should be encouraged with Jones' progress -- the Alabama product looked anything but a rookie in Week 4.
Jones didn't seem overwhelmed by the moment or the stakes. He threw for a career-high 275 yards, while Brady threw for 269. Of course, Brady is still very much a top five quarterback -- he's the reigning Super Bowl MVP, after all. But one could argue that the 44-year-old was outplayed by Jones, as the Patriots' rookie completed more passes (31 to 22) and won the touchdown battle, 2-0.
It’s a miracle that the Patriots even came close to winning, considering that their offense finished with -1 yards on the ground. Brady had multiple kneel-downs at the end of the game -- which detracts from a player’s rushing total -- and still ended up with more rushing yards than New England.
Jones converted on 78-percent of his passes against Tampa. In Brady's first season as the Pats' starter, back in 2001, he completed more than 73-percent of his passes just twice in 18 games. In four career games, Jones has already done it three times.
Unlike Jones, Brady had the benefit of spending his first NFL season on the bench, observing and acclimating. He certainly wasn’t thrown into the fire like Jones was. Jones doesn't have anyone in front of him who truly knows how to navigate the two-minute offense, or force a defensive lineman to jump offside with a hard count. At age 22, Brady was able to lean on multiple-time Pro Bowlers, and veteran quarterback Drew Bledsoe.
Through four weeks, Jones has outplayed every other rookie quarterback in his draft class -- especially the ones picked before him. Trevor Lawrence, the No. 1 overall pick, has yet to complete more than 73-percent of his passes in a game with the Jacksonville Jaguars. In two of his first four games, Jones had more passing scores than picks. Lawrence has yet to accomplish this once. Through eight total games between Lawrence and this year's second-overall pick, Zach Wilson, they've combined for fewer 270-yard passing games than Jones. Jones' efficiency continues to amaze, as he's converted on 70-percent of his pass attempts -- Wilson hasn't eclipsed 62-percent in a single game.
It isn't easy to be a franchise quarterback -- just take a look at the AFC East, where the Pats play. The Miami Dolphins haven’t had an All-Pro quarterback since Dan Marino, who retired in 2000. Before Josh Allen, the Buffalo Bills didn’t have a franchise signal-caller since Jim Kelly, who took the franchise to four consecutive Super Bowls during the 1990s. As for the New York Jets, it's been four-plus decades since their hero, Joe Namath, laced up his cleats. New England didn't win the game on Sunday, but Jones' performance was a nice consolation prize. Under the hood, Belichick is smiling, because he knows that Sunday was a big win for the franchise moving forward.