FOXBOROUGH — While the Patriots did not win Sunday against Miami, they do need to feel pretty good about rookie Mac Jones.
The No. 15 overall pick was terrific — finishing 29-for-39 passing with 281 yards and a touchdown. He did a great job of standing in the pocket to deliver some good throws knowing a big hit was coming.
The Patriots offense finished 11-for-16 on third down and a lot of that was because of some clutch throws from the rookie.
Here’s what some of his teammates, Bill Belichick and the Dolphins had to say about his debut afterwards.
Belichick: “I thought we all competed hard. We've just all got to do a better job. I mean, Mac competed hard. I thought we had a lot of guys competing hard. We've just got to perform better as a team.”
James White: “He definitely has a lot of poise. He stayed composed throughout the game. Obviously, everything wasn't perfect, but he kept us in it, keeping everybody motivated in the huddle. Obviously, it wasn't our best football game on offense, definitely got to play better in the red zone and create more points to help the defense out.”
Nelson Agholor: “I think he is a guy that loves the game of football and I think he is a really resilient player. He stays in the game and plays hard and is only going to get better.”
Jason McCourty: “He didn’t really make any mistakes, he was poised. Even watching him in the huddle getting guys in, yelling, commanding, and a lot of what he looked like in the preseason, is how he performed. He gave his team a chance to win. He didn’t really make any mistakes, didn’t throw any errant passes and he is a poised young guy. It was fun to see him and Tua [Tagovailoa] as college teammates being on opposite sidelines and it is obviously a lot more fun when you come out with a win.”
Brian Flores: "He played well. He moved the ball. Made the throws he needed to make. Made good decisions. I thought he played well. I thought we could have done some better things defensively. We'll make those corrections. But he played well.
