The Jacksonville Jaguars traded a 2024 sixth-round pick to the New England Patriots for Mac Jones. Since Jones was a 1st-round pick, his contract includes a 5th-year option of $25,664,000 for the 2025 season with a May 2 deadline.
The Jaguars have made their decision.
The Jacksonville Jaguars have made their decision.
The Jaguars declined Mac Jones’ 5th-year option, making him an unrestricted free agent in 2025.
Jones has struggled in the last two seasons.
Mac Jones could not return to rookie season form.
After having an impressive rookie season, Jones would struggle in his last two seasons. He struggled because Bill Belichick replaced Josh McDaniels with Matt Patricia in his second season, Belichick did a poor job of building talent around him, and other reasons.
Jones’s struggles began in his second season because Matt Patricia did a poor job of calling plays, and he battled a high ankle sprain, causing him to miss three games. He completed 288 out of 442 pass attempts for 2,997 yards, 14 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, and a 6-8 record.
Replacing Patricia with Bill O’Brien didn’t help Jones in his third season because Belichick did a poor job of building talent around him. He completed 224 out of 345 pass attempts for 2,120 yards, ten touchdowns, 12 interceptions, and a 2-9 record. He got benched in four of the 11 games, and the Patriots named Bailey Zappe the starter for their last six games.
Mac Jones wasn’t the only quarterback who had their 5th-year option declined.
Four of the five quarterbacks drafted in the 1st round of the 2021 NFL Draft had their 5th-year option declined.
- The Denver Broncos declined Zach Wilson’s option.
- The Dallas Cowboys will decline Trey Lance‘s option.
- The Pittsburgh Steelers will decline Justin Fields’ option.
What’s next for Mac Jones?
Jones will compete with C.J. Beathard for the backup quarterback job behind Trevor Lawrence, and he will be an unrestricted free agent after the 2024 season.
For now, Jones will be a backup quarterback until a team thinks he’s ready to be a starter again. He has some maturing to do.
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