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For better or worse, the first person Jakobi Meyers could think to throw the football to on his ill-fated lateral attempt last Sunday night was Mac Jones, the offense's clear emotional leader at this stage of the season. It ended poorly as we all know, but the sentiment behind why the ball went to Jones despite him no longer being useful on the play feels clearer the more you watch it.
Sure, David Andrews, Matthew Slater and Devin McCourty have more seniority than Jones and bring fire in their own way. But Jones is the quarterback, which means all eyes would look to him whether he was a captain or not (which he is).
For his part, Jones has been calling for greater urgency from just about everyone on offense the last three weeks, saying his team is sometimes "too flat" energy-wise and that his outbursts are a way to try and wake them up.
Unfortunately, that desire to push his squad seems to have thrown off his own equilibrium a bit last weekend, tipping him over the tenuous line he plays on between his hotheaded competitiveness and ability to play cold-calculated football and turn the page after mistakes.
The second-year quarterback will soon stand opposite another young passer Jones should be studying: Cincinnati's Joe Burrow.
Until this season, the two actually had a decent amount in common.
Neither came into college as a Day 1 starter at their respective programs, with Burrow transferring from Ohio State to LSU after being stuck behind Dwayne Haskins and Jones sitting behind both Jalen Hurts and Tua Tagovailoa at Alabama. Both had monster statistical seasons and won national championships in their final years in college before becoming first-round picks in the NFL Draft. (Burrow went No. 1 overall in 2020 and Jones was taken at No. 15 overall the next season.) Both also had strong rookie seasons, though Burrow's was cut short with a season-ending knee injury.
Of course, the Bengals got Burrow old LSU buddy Ja'Marr Chase in his second season with the Bengals to go with Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. The Patriots, meanwhile, acquired DeVante Parker, Matt Patricia and Joe Judge to support Jones in his sophomore season. Which one led to a Super Bowl appearance and which ended up in a dumpster fire? The suspense is killing me.
But the difference between them hasn't been all about their surroundings. It's also about how they function.
Burrow's known for his swagger and unmistakable air of knowing he's better than whatever defense he's facing. No matter how shaky his offensive line play is or what obstacles lay in front of him, he thinks he's going to win, and his teammates believe him. They don't call him "Joe Brrrrr" for nothing.
For example, this Bengals team was looking like a possible Super Bowl hangover candidate, sitting at 4-4 after a Halloween loss to the Cleveland Browns. They've since ripped off six straight wins and overtaken the banged-up Baltimore Ravens atop the AFC North. Burrow's consistency has been the driver.
Jones' frustration with his stagnating offense and a season slipping through his team's fingers is starting to become a headline instead of his ability to steady the ship when things look rough.
In the end, no one is asking Jones to be Burrow and start strolling into the stadium in sunglasses and Spongebob suits. They're different people with disparate ways of doing things, and both can be successful in their own way. Playing with his emotions on his sleeve is part of how Jones got to the NFL and won a starting job out of the gate.
But if Jones is going to knock off Burrow's Bengals and keep the Patriots in the playoff hunt past this weekend, he needs to channel some of that energy into making his teammates believe rather than just firing them up.
This offense isn't going to get more creative or much better executed between now and the end of the season. The best hope this unit has right now is to be able to look at its quarterback and knows he can see the path to victory beyond all doubt. It's probably hard to think that when he's flailing at the sideline constantly and then making mistakes he normally doesn't on his own account.
It's now-or-ever time for Jones to tweak his leadership style for the sake of his team, and taking on a little "Joe Cool" would be plenty poetic given the opponent this week.