Sources – Patriots finalizing trade of QB Mac Jones to Jaguars،
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Patriots are finalizing a deal to trade quarterback Mac Jones to the Jacksonville Jaguars, league sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter on Sunday.
The Patriots will receive a 2024 sixth-round pick as compensation, sources told Schefter. The trade cannot be processed until the new league year begins on Wednesday and Jones undergoes a medical.
New England holds the third pick in the NFL Draft, where many around the league expect them to select one of the highest-rated quarterbacks — likely a decision between LSU's Jayden Daniels and Carolina's Drake Maye North.
Jones, who grew up in Jacksonville, joins his hometown team as a replacement for Trevor Lawrence, the first overall pick in the 2021 draft. Jones was selected 15th in the 2021 draft.
Jones is expected to compete with CJ Beathard to become Lawrence's primary backup. Beathard is in the final year of a two-year, $4.5 million contract he signed before the 2023 season.
Beathard started only one game in his three seasons in Jacksonville, completing 17 of 24 passes for 178 yards to lead the Jaguars to a 26-0 victory over the Carolina Panthers in Week 17. last season. It was the Jaguars' only win in their final six games, as they finished 9-8 and failed to make the playoffs.
Lawrence had started every game of his NFL career until missing Week 17 with a right shoulder injury he suffered the previous week in a loss to the Buccaneers from Tampa Bay. Lawrence dealt with several injuries last season: a sprained left knee, a sprained ankle, a concussion and a shoulder injury. He did not participate fully in any practice during the final three weeks of the season.
Jones' three-year tenure with the Patriots began with promise, as he was selected to the Pro Bowl as a backup during his rookie season. Jones started all 17 regular season games as the Patriots went 10-7 and clinched a playoff berth (losing to the Buffalo Bills 47-17 in the wild-card round).
Jones went 352 of 521 for 3,801 yards with 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions as a rookie, but his production dipped over the next two seasons. The departure of offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels to become head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders was the first in a series of changes – both coaching and personnel – that affected Jones' development.
In 2022, former Patriots coach Bill Belichick turned to longtime defensive coach Matt Patricia as the team's offensive player, asking Patricia to implement his vision for the offense . Longtime special teams coach Joe Judge was named quarterbacks coach. The marriage with Patricia, Judge and Jones did not produce the expected results, with Jones finishing 288 of 442 for 2,997 yards with 14 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. An ankle injury early in the season also affected Jones, who admitted he could have handled some on-field decisions better.
Belichick then hired former Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien to run the offense in 2023, hoping to get Jones back on track, but it never came to fruition. Jones finished last season going 224-of-345 for 2,120 yards with 10 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, with Belichick benching him after 11 games in favor of Bailey Zappe.
The Patriots currently have Zappe and second-year player Nathan Rourke on their quarterback depth chart.
The team had one-and-done selections in each round of the draft, so a sixth-round pick gives them one extra pick in this round and eight overall.
ESPN's Michael DiRocco contributed to this report.
