AMESBURY, Mass. — According to league sources who spoke with ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Sunday, the New England Patriots and the Jacksonville Jaguars are nearing completion of a trade for quarterback Mac Jones.
Schefter was informed by insiders that the two parties had been debating a sixth-round draft selection as payment. The deal cannot be completed unless Jones passes a physical on Wednesday, the start of the new league season.
The Patriots have the third pick in the NFL draft, and many in the league anticipate that they will choose one of the best quarterbacks, most likely Drake Maye of North Carolina or Jayden Daniels of LSU.
Jones, a native of Jacksonville, signs with his native team to serve as Trevor Lawrence’s backup. Lawrence is the first choice in the 2021 draft. Jones had been chosen fifteenth in the draft of 2021.
Jones will likely go off against C.J. Beathard to be Lawrence’s main backup. Beathard signed a two-year, $4.5 million contract prior to the 2023 season, and he is currently in the final year of it.
In his three seasons in Jacksonville, Beathard has only started one game. In Week 17 of the previous season, he led the Jaguars to a 26-0 victory over the Carolina Panthers by passing on 17 of 24 passes for 178 yards. The Jaguars finished 9-8 and missed the playoffs; that was their lone victory in their final six games.
Before missing the Week 17 match against the Panthers due to a right (throwing) shoulder injury he sustained the week prior in a loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Lawrence had started every game in his NFL career. Last season, Lawrence fought a number of injuries, including a sprained left knee, sprained ankle, concussion, and shoulder injury. For the final three weeks of the season, he did not fully participate in any of the practices.
Jones’ three-year career with the Patriots started off well; during his debut year, he was chosen as an alternate for the Pro Bowl. Jones started every one of the Patriots’ 17 regular-season games as they finished 10-7 and guaranteed a spot in the postseason (losing 47-17 to the Buffalo Bills in the wild card round).
As a rookie, Jones was 352-of-521 for 3,801 yards with 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions; however, over the following two seasons, his output declined. The first of several personnel and coaching changes that had an impact on Jones’ growth was the departure of offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels to take a position as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.
As the team’s offensive playcaller in 2022, former Patriots head coach Bill Belichick turned to longtime defensive coach Matt Patricia, urging Patricia to carry out his new offensive philosophy. Joe Judge, a longtime special teams coach, was appointed quarterbacks coach. Judge, Patricia, and Jones’ marriage didn’t work out as planned; Jones completed 288-of-442 for 2,997 yards with 14 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. An early-season ankle injury also affected Jones, who acknowledged there were on-field decisions he also could have handled better.
In an attempt to get Jones back on track, Belichick then brought in former Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien to oversee the offense in 2023, but it never worked out. Last season, Jones completed 224 of 345 passes for 2,120 yards, 10 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. After 11 games, Belichick benched Jones in favor of Bailey Zappe.
On the Patriots’ quarterback depth chart right now are second-year player Nathan Rourke and Zappe.
The team had single selections in each round of the draft, so a sixth-round pick gives them an additional pick in that round, and eight overall.
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