Mac Jones on the Move?

Former Alabama quarterback Mac Jones could possibly be on the move from the New England Patriots this offseason, according to Albert Breer, senior NFL reporter for the Monday Morning Quarterback.

"Internally, I don't know if they see this massive gap between Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe," said Breer. "I'm not saying they think Bailey's as good as Mac, but there was some element of Bailey doing what he was coached to do last year that I think gave Bailey the edge to some degree for a little while there."

Despite Jones being drafted No. 15 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft, making the Pro Bowl and leading the Patriots to the playoffs all during his rookie year, New England still drafted Zappe in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft.

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After Jones and backup quarterback Brian Hoyer both got sidelined by injuries in back-to-back games, Zappe was thrusted into the starter position, where he won the two games he started while also giving New England its two highest scoring games of the season. Zappe was eventually replaced by Jones again, and while he did see time on the field after returning to the bench, Jones finished the season off for the Patriots.

Though he did miss three games this past season, Jones still did take a bit of a step back from his rookie season, throwing 14 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Three of those interceptions came in the Patriots' final game of the season against the Buffalo Bills, which officially knocked them out of playoff contention in favor of the Miami Dolphins.

New England has already made offseason moves on the offensive side of the ball, firing Matt Patricia as the team's offensive play caller and hiring former Alabama offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien for the same position.

With the offseason still just beginning, Jones' security with the team has yet to be confirmed by anyone in the organization, but even if he returns for the 2023 season, his room for error is probably small with Zappe right behind him.