FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Quick-hit thoughts and notes around the New England Patriots and NFL:
1. Mac’s deep ball: Spring practices are the appetizer to the main menu, and quarterback Mac Jones and the Patriots’ offense provided a tasty preview of what they hope to be cooking in 2022.
The main takeaway: There is potential for significant improvement in the deep passing game.
Jones delivered three downfield, tight-window throws in the final practice of mandatory minicamp that couldn’t have been placed any better.
There was a high-arc ball down the left sideline to receiver Nelson Agholor, who had rookie cornerback Jack Jones running stride-for-stride with him on a “go” route, so close that Jones was tugging his jersey as the ball arrived.
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Then a deep right-to-left crossing route to tight end Jonnu Smith, who hardly appeared open with safety Kyle Dugger in his back pocket, but made a diving catch.
And finally, a 50-yard bomb down the middle to receiver Tre Nixon, who somehow pinned the drop-in-the-bucket throw to his chest with his right hand, as cornerback Jonathan Jones was all over him. Jones seemed stunned at the completion based on his coverage.
They were plays that sparked celebrations from the offense, and veteran safety Devin McCourty referenced them as “haymakers” — great throws and catches against top coverage.
McCourty said the way the offense and defense traded “big-time shots” against each other this spring, with neither side dominating, is the type of sign he looks for when assessing the potential of a complete team.
Specific to the offense, success in the deep passing game could be the missing piece to becoming a complete attack.
Consider these nuggets from last season, via ESPN Stats & Information:
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41% of Jones’ pass attempts thrown at least 20 yards downfield were over- or underthrown last season, an off-target mark that ranked 21st in the NFL (league average 36%).
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Jones ranked 24th with a 38.8% completion rate on vertical routes last season according to NFL Next Gen Stats. His completion percentage above expectation on those throws was -4.5% (26th out of 31 qualified QBs).
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Jones had his most completions 20-plus yards downfield to receiver Jakobi Meyers (7-of-16), but struggled to connect with Agholor (4-of-17, 0 TD, 2 INT).
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Patriots receivers ranked 25th with only 1.6 yards of separation on deep balls per NFL Next Gen Stats.
Jones felt “good strides” were made in practice this spring, but stressed that the work must continue.
“We want to be able to do whatever we want to do at any given time, whether that’s a run, pass, play-action — short, medium, or long. We’re trying to be able to have a little bit of variety,” he said.
2. Rookie hustle: In 2003, when safety Rodney Harrison signed with the Patriots as a free agent, he was practicing at a different tempo and popped receiver Troy Brown on one play. Nearly 20 years later, a parallel could be drawn to Patriots first-round pick Cole Strange, as on the final play of practice Tuesday, the guard got tangled up with outside linebacker Matthew Judon after a pack of players were around a loose football, and there was shouting on the field.
No hard feelings from Judon, who later highlighted something others around the Patriots have said of Strange — he’s always full-throttle (which was a Harrison staple).
“If you saw him, he was sprinting from 30 yards away,” Judon said. “Great hustle from him.”
3. Eyes on Nixon: Nixon, a practice squad receiver (seventh round, 2021, Central Florida), made two of the most impressive plays this spring, so now the question is if he can carry that momentum into training camp and make a charge for a roster…
Read More: Mac Jones’ deep throws show potential for a more explosive Patriots attack – New