New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones spent the brunt of the 2022 season questioning the offense under Matt Patricia and even hurling a few f-bombs along the way. Now, he’s reportedly celebrating the hiring of Bill O’Brien as the new offensive coordinator behind the scenes.
According to MassLive’s Mark Daniels, this situation is the “best of both worlds” for Jones.
Daniels wrote:
“According to one source close to Jones, the Patriots quarterback is “very” excited about O’Brien coming to New England. Another source close to the Patriots quarterback told MassLive that Jones “is looking forward to working with coach O’Brien.” They added that since the Patriots and Alabama have a similar culture and offensive approach, it should help Jones with the transition of working with O’Brien.”
Patriots coach Bill Belichick’s decision to hand the offensive play-calling reins over to Matt Patricia ultimately led to the offense falling off a cliff and Jones’ regression in his second NFL season.
The hope is that the team can get back to some form of normalcy under O’Brien, who is an experienced offensive play-caller with familiarity with the quarterback. This is the first true offensive coordinator hire for the Patriots since they lost Josh McDaniels to the Las Vegas Raiders last offseason.
If the defense can continue playing at the level they displayed in 2022, there might be hope for New England to make some real noise if the offense can find a heartbeat under O’Brien.
