Patriots owner Robert Kraft sends clear message about Mac Jones

Jan 20, 2019; Kansas City, MO, USA; New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft watches from the sidelines before the AFC Championship game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Mac Jones is coming off a disappointing second NFL season, but New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft’s opinion on the former Alabama star has not changed.

Kraft on Monday shared some of his thoughts on Jones at the NFL owners meetings in Phoenix. He expressed full confidence in the quarterback and indicated that he does not feel Jones was put in a position to succeed last year.

Kraft continues, saying he thinks the Patriots have "made changes to put him [Mac Jones] in a position to excel."

Adds that Jones has been in the building regularly this offseason.

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“I’m a big fan of Mac. He quarterbacked his rookie season and did a very fine job I thought. We made the playoffs,” Kraft said. “I think we experimented with some things last year that frankly didn’t work when it came to him, in my opinion.”

While Kraft did not go into detail, it is pretty safe to assume he was referring to the way Bill Belichick handled New England’s coaching staff in 2022. For some reason, Belichick felt it was a good idea to have former Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia serve as the team’s primary playcaller. The end result was one of the worst offenses in the NFL, and Jones was openly combative toward Patricia during games.

Belichick also brought back Joe Judge, his former special teams coordinator, and had him act as quarterbacks coach. Jones’ working relationship with Judge may have been even worse.

The Patriots have since re-hired Bill O’Brien as their offensive coordinator. Belichick may have been pressured by Kraft to make that move.

While Kraft’s comments could be interpreted as a swipe at Belichick, they also sent a strong message to Jones. If Jones cannot produce better results with a new coaching staff, he may start losing some support within the organization.