"He never stood up" - NFL insider lays blame squarely on Bill Belichick for 2022 failure amid Mac Jones drama
As Bill Belichick and Mac Jones move forward together in 2023, it's now clear that the pair have had some drama brewing over the last year. Jones was unsatisfied with the New England Patriots' coaching staff and took to Alabama to find some help, but this had Bill Belichick upset.
Hiring Bill O'Brien as the Patriots' new offensive coordinator eased some of the tensions between the quarterback and the coach. O'Brien has a deep relationship with both parties, as he occupied the same role in New England years ago while he did the same in Alabama when Jones was the quarterback.
Belichick has been clear about how he felt disrespected by his quarterback's actions during the 2022 season. But did he accept some of the blame for his awful staff hires the previous season?
According to Sports Illustrated insider Albert Breer, he has not shouldered any blame at all.
"My understanding is he hasn't admitted it to anyone in the building. He made the changes and that was that like the people I've talked to inside that building have said like his admission that something went wrong last year was the changes that they made. But he never stood up in front of any group of players and a group of coaches and a group of scouts and a group of staff and said what I did last year was a mistake. It's on me, we're gonna fix it., it was just he made the changes and kept it moving."
Can the Patriots trade Mac Jones? What is his contract?
New England could find a way to trade their quarterback in financial terms, but it just doesn't make sense to let go of a quarterback who's going to cost less than $10 million in the next two years combined. This is a low value even based on regular rookie contracts, which are way higher for the top picks.
Jones has two years left on his contract, which is fully guaranteed, and the Patriots have the option to activate a fifth-year (they probably will) due to him being a first-round pick. His cap hit is $4.25M in 2023 and $4.9 in 2024.