Mac Jones Secretly Hoped He'd End Up Getting Drafted By Patriots
By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- As 14 picks -- and four quarterbacks -- went off the board on Thursday night, the national audience watched as Mac Jones waited to get word on his NFL home.
While anyone would be naturally a bit stressed in such a situation -- especially after hearing so many rumors about going third overall to San Francisco -- it turns out that a best-case scenario was playing out for the young quarterback.
"Yeah, I mean, at the end of the day, you kind of want to just get the right fit. And I feel like secretly I really wanted to go to the Patriots all along," Jones told the media not long after being selected with the 15th overall pick. "So I'm actually really happy that it happened. It doesn't really matter where you get picked. You've gotta take the opportunity and take advantage of it, learn the new system, learn the new coaches, learn the new culture. And Coach Belichick's done a great job establishing that throughout his time in New England. I just gotta learn how to be a great teammate, do my job, and stick to what they're telling me to do."
Jones later expounded on what it is about the Patriots that he finds appealing.
"Honestly, New England is just a great place. In watching them in the past years, they do everything right. It's all about the team, and that's kind of what I grew up knowing, is being a good teammate," Jones said. "And then obviously winning, it comes down to winning football games, and New England's done that. But they don't look in the past, they just look at the future, so we've gotta just focus on trying to win games and take it day by day and eventually you'll win a lot of games. So I'm just looking forward to getting in there and meeting my new teammates and seeing what happens from there."
And after getting the call, Jones made his way on stage to meet Roger Goodell. His determined walk immediately went viral ...
... but once he got on stage, he savored the moment that every football player dreams of one day experiencing.
"It was awesome, and that's just a great experience," Jones said. "Going up there with Goodell was awesome. It's like, you know, video game type stuff. But we were just talking about how great of a fit it might be, and I think he totally supports me and he's a great guy and it was good to just be able to shake his hand up there, you know, on TV and stuff."
While a first-round quarterback is drafted with the intention of him taking over the starting job as soon as possible, Jones yielded to Cam Newton and Jarrett Stidham as the veterans who have already established themselves as NFL players.
"For me, I'm actually joining a really great quarterback room with Cam Newton, who's played in the NFL for a really long time. He's earned the respect of his teammates, going to New England and being a captain," Jones said. "And then you got Jarrett, who I've really loved watching at Auburn and kind of use as a role model. So, both those guys are role models to me right now and I'm just going to go behind them and and learn how they did it because they've seen a lot of good quarterbacks too -- like Tom [Brady] and everybody. So honestly, just kind of play my role and listen to them and take advice and help them however I can, whether it's taking notes or whatever I need to do to help the team win."
He added: "I mean I've never played in the NFL or anything. I don't know what it's like. So I'm just gonna go in there and work really hard, like I always have and I always will. And like I said, Cam earned the respect of the team already. And my job is to support him and Jarrett, to help them become better players if I can. Like I said I've never played in the NFL, but I've seen good football, and I know that I can help them with anything they need, whether it's taking notes or taking the stress off their mind. So I'm just gonna be a great teammate that I know I can be."
Deep down inside, Jones likely wants to be the starting quarterback as soon as possible. And he surely knows that's why the Patriots drafted him.
But he also knows the right thing to say at the right moment to not create any bit of controversy where it's not needed. Sounds as though he's fitting in well in Foxboro before he's even arrived.
