There was about a 36-hour window following their Week 7 loss to the Chicago Bears where Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots seemed unsure of their plan at quarterback moving forward. But Belichick has made it clear who the starter is for Week 8.
On Wednesday, it was reported that Jones would start in Week 8 against the New York Jets. Speaking to the media on Thursday, Belichick stated that Jones had “a full workload” on Wednesday and is expected to be “fully available” for Sunday.
“Mac [Jones] had a full workload yesterday. I expect him to be fully available and ready to go for the game,” Belichick said, via Albert Breer.
When a reporter asked him if Jones was the starter, Belichick said, “That’s what I just said, isn’t it? He got a full load.”
He later added, “We started the game we wanted to start it last week and we talked about the way it ended up. This week’s a different week, so different situation. Mac will be the quarterback.”
So, yeah, Mac Jones is starting in Week 8.
As a rookie in 2021, Mac Jones was the best first-year quarterback in the league, making the Pro Bowl while finishing second in the Rookie of the Year voting. But he’s just 1-3 to start the 2022 season and has been far more mistake prone than he was last year.
Jones’ touchdown rate has dropped to less than half while his interception rate has more than doubled.
His struggles have some calling for rookie quarterback Bailey Zappe to take his job already.
But a strong game against the Jets and their top 10 defense will reaffirm everyone’s confidence in him.
Will Mac Jones regain the confidence of the league after Week 8?