New England’s trip out west to play the Los Angeles Chargers kept Mac Jones up well past his bedtime.
During the CBS broadcast of Sunday’s game, play-by-play announcer Ian Eagle said that when they spoke with Jones and asked him how he felt traveling and playing a game on the opposite side of the country, the Patriots’ rookie quarterback replied that “this is the latest I’ve been up for a while just because of the time change.”
Then, Eagle continued, sideline reporter Evan Washburn asked Jones what his normal bedtime is.
“’8:30 at night,” Eagle recalled Jones saying. “I get up at 4:45 in the morning. I want to be at the facility by 6:30. By the time I get there, there are already 100 cars in the parking lot.'”
According to Yahoo Sports, Jones’ sleep schedule compares to that of longtime New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady — who departed in free agency for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after the 2019 season — and his 9 p.m. until 6 a.m. routine.
The Patriots drafted Jones out of Alabama with the 15th overall pick in the 2021 draft, and he beat out Cam Newton for the starting job heading into the season. And in his first eight starts, he’s converted on 68.1% of his passing attempts for 1,997 yards, nine touchdowns and six interceptions — though Sunday snapped his streak of five straight games with at least one touchdown pass.
New England defeated the Chargers, 27-24, to hand them their third loss of the season, as Jones completed 18 of 35 passes for 218 yards without a touchdown or interception. Their offense managed just two field goals in the second half, as a pick-six by the defense provided the team with their lone touchdown in those two quarters, but Jones has now helped even the team’s record at 4-4 and keep them a perfect 3-0 away from Gillette Stadium heading into next week’s game against the Carolina Panthers.
“I definitely didn’t have my best day at all, and I think everyone around me had a great day,” Jones said in his postgame press conference. “That’s what football’s all about. I gotta find ways to improve in that aspect of just being consistent and making the throws I know I can make.”