By the Patriots releasing Cam Newton on Tuesday, it signals that rookie Mac Jones will be the team's starting quarterback.
Speaking to reporters via video conference Wednesday morning, offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels was asked about the rookie and what he's demonstrated for the team to be comfortable with him as the starter.
“Well, I think it’s an evaluation when you look at the whole body of work since he got here," McDaniels said. "He really works hard. He puts a lot of time into it. He’s been well prepared each day to come in and do the things that we ask our guys to do. He’s learned how to operate what we’ve asked him to operate so far fairly well. And he’s improved. And he continues to make progress. He’s generally taken care of the football. And he’s given the other 10 guys on the field an opportunity to do their job effectively and produce positive plays.
"He still has a lot to learn and a long way to go in terms of where hopefully we end up going, but I really feel confident about his approach, his ability to learn, his ability to process information and really his ability to make a mistake and learn from those, too. Because that’s a never ending process for every player. He generally — he’s a great listener and he tries not to make the same mistake twice. Not saying that he doesn’t do that at times, but I think he’s really shown a strong aptitude at a young age to try to put those mistakes behind him and then move on and try to continue to improve as a quarterback.”
Multiple players have acknowledged Jones has earned their respect already, and McDaniels explained how he has done that with him as well.
“He’s just come in and he works hard at his craft," he said. "We have a lot of guys that do that. He’s had a lot of great examples in front of him, both in the quarterback room, in our offensive room and in our squad room. He’s got a lot of veteran players that he can look to as great examples for how to approach being a NFL football player. I think he’s been very perceptive with some of those things and he’s come in and he’s worked extremely hard.
"Like I said, he is very well prepared each day. He deserves the credit for that. He continues to put the game and the team first. He studies hard at the game. He tries to make the corrections that we coach him on and he goes out there and he tries to do it the right way. Never makes excuses and just continues to try and improve and make progress. That’s the best way for any of us to approach our jobs and he’s done that so far.”
Jones' first NFL start will come Sept. 12 when the Patriots host the Dolphins.
