Mac Jones won the job as the Patriots’ starting quarterback, but Cam Newton didn’t do himself any favors | You Pod to Win the Game
Yahoo Sports’ Senior NFL Writer Charles Robinson and Yahoo Sports’ Columnist Dan Wetzel discuss the Patriots naming rookie Mac Jones their starting quarterback and releasing former league MVP Cam Newton. Hear the full conversation on the You Pod to Win the Game podcast. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you listen.
Video Transcript
CHARLES ROBINSON: I'll say this first off about Mac Jones-- I went back and I watched all of his pre-season tape and I didn't see the joint practices-- I read everything that happened in the joint practices, including the ones against the Giants that Cam missed, and the kid was exemplary from the reports of the joint practices. But then when you go and you look at how he played in the preseason, you could want to hate the kid, you could want to not-- it wouldn't matter. Because what you saw-- it was impossible to watch him play and not go, this is crazy. Like, it's crazy how well this kid is playing in the preseason.
I thought by the end, it wouldn't have mattered what Cam did. Mac Jones probably would have ended up winning that job or at the very least, put out enough to have a 51% to 49% edge over Cam when the season started. I think Mac Jones won the job. But that said, I think that Cam Newton lost his roster spot because of the fact that he was going to be a backup, because of the fact that he was going to be unvaccinated, because of the fact that they ran into an issue already. And you could do the whole gymnastics of oh, did the Patriots know? Did they cover for him? Or did Cam-- like who knew what-- it just-- it doesn't matter at that point. I think you just do the math and you go-- it removes the equation that we have to solve every week with the backup quarterback. And so this just doesn't make sense for us.
DAN WETZEL: Anybody who thinks that vaccination had a role in Mac Jones getting that job, paid no attention. I watched all three Patriots games, I watched every snap that Cam and Mac had. In the second preseason game, Mac Jones got settled and he started stepping into passes and throwing bullets. The knock on him going in was arm strength. He didn't have the Mahomes-- even the Lawrence-- that running one way, huck it across your body-- this kind of physical talent. When he threw a deep ball to N'Keal Harry in the Philly game, Harry didn't catch it. But that was on him, and he kind of got hurt. He threw another, it split coverage and I said, oh my goodness, this kid's really good. I know it's preseason. I'm not going to put him-- we're not writing his Hall of Fame speech. But if you watched all these guys-- and I think I watched every snap of all the five rookies this pre-season-- I think he's the best rookie in the pre-season.
Cam-- did Cam blow it by getting into the protocol? I don't know. I don't know that that was the decider, because I think Mac was better, but it certainly doesn't help when you're trying to keep your job. To not only give other guy an opportunity, like those joint practices with Giants, but have it seared into the organization's head-- not only is Mac Jones doing well, but this is what it looks like when Cam isn't even here.
CHARLES ROBINSON: Right. Yep.
DAN WETZEL: And you go, you know what? Because Cam brings a lot to the table. It's not just his ability as a player. He is a leader, the guys love him-- all that. And all of a sudden, maybe you look around and go boy, our sideline's still energetic, or this is going on, or I like the way we come out of the locker room. And so, boom. But Mac Jones won that job and he won it so decisively that Belichick just said, look, this is what has to happen now. I'm not going to wait. What has to be-- the decision I have to make in the future-- I'm not going to wait, I'm going to make today. And it's going to be a very, very exciting start to the season for New England. All eyes on them.