FOXBOROUGH — Benched for the final six games of the season, Patriots quarterback Mac Jones had some free time on his hands.
Apparently, he spent it in the weight room.
Speaking to the media for the first time since losing the starting job to Bailey Zappe in late November, Jones said he believed he’d made the most of his time out of the spotlight.
“I feel like I made progress, especially these last couple weeks,” Jones said. “I’ve been here early, left late. A lot of people would have just said, ‘I’m done and I’m not going to do that.’ I’ve worked out hard. Put on seven to eight pounds of muscle in the last couple of weeks here.
“That’s where I’m at right now, and what I’m looking for is the next opportunity. I know it’s going to come, but at the end of the day, as a quarterback and a competitor, you’ve got to be ready, right? So I’m going to be ready.”
So why did Jones feel the need to add that muscle?
“Really just getting a chance to work on my own stuff and doing my own things in the weight room,” Jones said. Just getting stronger throughout the whole year. It’s hard to do that — it’s really hard. When I talk about my notes, and things I reviewed, that’s one of the things that went well. Got to build on that in the offseason. It’ll help me in my next opportunity wherever that is.”
Jones was non-committal on his future Monday morning, and a lot of it is likely tied to Bill Belichick’s own future. If the coach is back with the Patriots for a 25th season, it’s hard to imagine Jones joining him on New England’s roster. Demoted to the emergency third quarterback for Sunday’s season finale, Jones has clearly fallen out of favor with the man who drafted him in the first round three seasons ago.
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