On Sunday, I was critical of McDaniels for being too conservative in the red zone after getting first and 10 at the 11, the Patriots called two runs to Brandon Bolden that were stuffed, then a swing pass to Jonnu Smith for 4 yards, and settled for a short field goal. ▪ Some of the play-calling is on Jones, too. But Jones instead stepped up right into the pressure and into a sack. The rush was initially picked up well, and Jones had a ton of space outside the pocket if he could get there. The first sack of the game was a cornerback blitz by C.J. His fill-in, Justin Herron, was on the ground far too often against the Saints, and the Patriots had to use a tight end or running back to help Herron handle pass rusher Cam Jordan.īut Jones created his own pressure, too, with inconsistent pocket awareness and an inability to create clean throwing lanes. To be clear, the Patriots’ offensive line wasn’t good Sunday, and has struggled without right tackle Trent Brown. It’s no coincidence that four of the least-mobile quarterbacks - Ben Roethlisberger, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, and Philip Rivers - are among the five least-sacked quarterbacks of the last five seasons.

▪ Protecting the quarterback is on the quarterback, too - to be able to shuffle and slide away from trouble, or know where to go with the ball before the snap, or know when to throw the ball away. Let’s take a look at how Jones can improve: