For The Last Time...Mac Jones

The 15-year ride has been cut short. By 12 years.

Not that anyone's surprised, but the Mac Jones era in New England has officially ended.

Despite recent memory, the ride we took wasn't always filled with gloom and pathetic-ness. There was once a time of hope, a time of promise, a feeling of conviction that we'd moved on from the Brady era without losing a beat.

If I may.

I remember Draft Day 2021 when a young McCorkle speed-walked down the red carpet to give Goodell a happiest hug I'd ever seen. I remember him looking ready to run through a wall saying how this is where he wanted to go, how it was the perfect fit for both sides, etc. etc.

He had me at that walk. The maniacal swiftness which he Donkey Kong stomped his way down the hallway in whatever small market city held the draft that year took my breath away. His competitive juices pierced the screen and struck me in my heart. "That's my quarterback."

And that season he looked like it. 10 wins, a playoff appearance, a "Pro Bowl", and a top six offense in the NFL had New England right back up on our high horse. Sure he might not have the strongest arm, but when you're putting up fifty burgers every other month who gives a shit? Brady's arm got stronger as his career progressed, his should too, right?

Wrong. Sparing you the details of the spiraling circus that was the Patriots' next two years, Mac was never the same. Coaching decisions Belichick hopefully leaves in his will to be shared to the masses were inexplicably made. Personnel surrounding him wasn't up to snuff. And Mac's play and overall demeanor, whether warranted or not, left the once sure-fire GOAT successor in no man's land.

So the fact he won't start another game for the Patriots isn't a surprise. But it's a sad reminder of what happens when young players who aren't gifted with Herculean talent aren't put in position to succeed by their organization.

I don't think Mac Jones is a terrible quarterback. Maybe it's the remnants of those feelings on 2021 draft night, or the psychotic firepower he showed anytime he made a mistake that made me root so hard for him, but I just don't think he is.

Him succeeding on the post-McDaniels' Patriots would've taken a miracle. I laid the reasons out before, but when your coaches don't believe in you, and put you on a short leash for two years after being fed calescent garbage by the worst offensive coordinator combination to ever grace an NFL sideline, not many people are coming out the other side.

I hope he gets another shot. I feel like he'll take advantage if he does. I think Jacksonville is a great spot, and whether it's injury or the Jags realizing Trevor isn't worth the $250 million contract they'll have to give him if he has another subpar year, I think he'll get one.

But he had to go. Let him roam free and start a new life. Just as the Patriots will.

Just don't forget to remember the good times, as far away as they seem.