Ninkovich criticizes Mac Jones while praising Drake Mayes’ “behavior” – originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Mac Jones didn’t live to see the end of his rookie contract in New England. And a former Patriots player is apparently quite happy about that.
Former Patriots edge rusher and two-time Super Bowl winner Rob Ninkovich spoke about the dangers New England faces in using rookie quarterback Drake Maye too early, citing the decline of Jones, whose performance in the Patriots’ dysfunctional offense dropped so much that the team traded him to the Jacksonville Jaguars in March.
“Look at damn Mac Jones in Jacksonville right now. He’s all over the grid,” Ninkovich said on a recent episode of the “Dan and Ninko Show.”
Co-host Dan O’Brien then mentioned that Jones doesn’t like Ninkovich, which elicited some strong words from the ex-patriot.
“I don’t give a shit,” Ninkovich said. “I’m going to punch fucking Mac Jones. I don’t care. Do you care if someone doesn’t like you?
“…I hope he has a great career as a substitute and earns a lot of money.”
Jones’ strong play in the 2024 preseason – 421 passing yards, three touchdown passes and an NFL-leading passer rating of 115.9 – left some wondering if the Alabama product deserves another chance in a more functional New England offense.
However, Ninkovich believes it was time for Jones to go and is impressed with Maye’s behavior compared to Jones.
“It didn’t work out. They needed a change,” Ninkovich said. “The behavior of Mac Jones and Drake Maye alone is completely different.”
Ninkovich then began imitating Jones in his post-game press conferences.
Warning: The video contains explicit language.
“I couldn’t listen to, ‘Yeah, you know, I just have to keep working and get better and uh, you know, I’m just going to keep working hard and we’re just all in this together and uh, yeah, it wasn’t my best and I need to get better.’ Over and over and over and over.
“I’d rather listen to Drake Maye than say, ‘Yeah, my modeling career didn’t work out, so, um, I’m back down here in Jacksonville now.'”
Jones was undoubtedly in a difficult position in New England, having to work with starting offensive lineman Matt Patricia in 2022 and a subpar offensive line in 2023. He could have held up better, however, as his outbursts on the sideline reportedly irked his teammates and coaches.
While it’s quite possible Maye will face similar adversity in his first start, the Patriots (and Ninkovich) are hoping the UNC product can show more mental toughness than his predecessor.
“I just needed more nuts,” Ninkovich said of Jones. “… toughness, that’s what I needed.”
