{"id":82444,"date":"2021-09-10T22:00:06","date_gmt":"2021-09-10T22:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/?p=82444"},"modified":"2021-09-17T06:45:42","modified_gmt":"2021-09-17T06:45:42","slug":"patriots-mailbag-what-will-pats-offense-look-like-with-mac-jones-as-the-starter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/?p=82444","title":{"rendered":"Patriots Mailbag: What Will Pats Offense Look Like With Mac Jones as the Starter?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Mac Jones era in New England will begin when the Patriots kickoff against the Miami Dolphins in Sunday\u2019s season-opener at Gillette Stadium.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Although Jones\u2019s 59 preseason drop-backs gave us a glimpse into a Mac-led offense, we are stating the obvious by saying offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels held back in the preseason.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The preseason is mostly vanilla and doesn\u2019t show their entire vision for the season, so what will the Mac-attack look like in Week 1?<\/span><\/p>\n

Another obvious statement is that the Pats are a game plan team that tailors their scheme each week to their opponent, but even a Belichick-coached bunch has tendencies and a foundation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With Jones, we saw a few of those foundational elements in August, such as operating in the quick-game and out of empty formations. In the preseason, nearly 38 percent of Jones\u2019s passes came out in less than 2.5 seconds. He also ran 14 of his 59 drop-backs out of empty.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

However, multiple trends will undoubtedly change. First, the Pats didn\u2019t play a snap with Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith on the field together this summer due to Henry\u2019s shoulder injury. 12-personnel will be a significant part of New England\u2019s offense this season, and it\u2019ll be fascinating to see how the spacing with Henry, Smith, and Jakobi Meyers works itself out.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to survive and adjust. Adapt to whatever it is,\u201d Meyers told CLNS Media this week. \u201c I feel it’s been pretty smooth right now. We have some great coaches. Josh [McDaniels] is always going to find ways to use his weapons the best he can.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Second, Jones, who ran tons of play-action and RPOs at Alabama, only ran play-action on 20.3% of his preseason drop-backs. The Pats rookie was terrific off play-action, averaging 12.4 yards per attempt with an adjusted completion percentage of 91.7. His play-action frequency should skyrocket in the regular season, especially with the introduction of two-tight end sets.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Plus, just 26.2% of Jones\u2019s drop-backs were from under center, which should increase a bit.<\/span><\/p>\n

And lastly, more motion, a lot more motion. The Patriots only utilized pre-snap motion on 29.9% of their plays on offense in the preseason (23rd). That followed a trend from last year where New England ranked 15th in pre-snap motion with Newton as the starter (48%). In Tom Brady\u2019s final season in 2019, the Pats were third, using motion on 64.4% of their offensive plays.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The theory here is that the Patriots will run most of the core passing concepts we saw in the preseason but out of different formations and with more window dressing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Utilizing their two tight ends to out-formation defenses, more play-action and RPOs, and a return to the Brady-era frequency of pre-snap motion to give Jones coverage indicators and help receivers gain leverage on defenders (Jones did a lot of these things at Alabama, too).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The beauty of having two talented tight ends that can catch the ball and block is that McDaniels can run any formation out of the same personnel grouping (12).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

New England can be a smash-mouth team with Henry and Smith inside the formation. They can spread the defense out by detaching one or both tight ends and morph on the fly.<\/span><\/p>\n

You put base defense out there? Let\u2019s go empty. Nickel or dime package? We\u2019ll run it down your throats. We saw this for 20 years with Brady, where the GOAT would have two play calls and check into the right one based on the defense at the line of scrimmage.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And, no, the Patriots won’t hold Jones back from throwing the football if those are the looks he gets from the defense; let it fly, kid.<\/p>\n

The Pats\u2019 flexibility as an offense returns to its usual form. Yes, the accuracy and quick release are nice. But the volume that Mac handles so well is what makes McDaniels\u2019s scheme go.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Without further ado, here\u2019s the Week 1 edition of our Patriots mailbag:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

How concerned are you about Mac's ability to make it through the season from a physical perspective? Stacked O-line should help, but he doesn't carry a lot of beef.<\/p>\n

— Cheryl (@chw7821) September 9, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n