Boomer Esiason isn’t enamored with the way Mac Jones carries himself.
Speaking on “The Greg Hill Show” on WEEI on Monday, Esiason said that the constant pressure on Jones in the Patriots’ 23-21 win over the Dolphins on Sunday was frustrating the quarterback – and Jones’ handling of adversity sends out “douchiness” vibes.
“Here’s the thing that I really dislike about Mac Jones if you want to get to the root of it,” Esiason told the Boston radio station. “His body language, his facial expressions, his gyrations on the field — piss me off. There’s a douchiness to them. I don’t know how else to explain it.”
Esiason cited Tom Brady as an example of someone who is “douchey” but backs up his prima donna behavior with his performance.
“And here’s the deal, you know, Tom Brady could be douchey too at times,” Esiason said. “And he can be yelling at his players and everything else. But Tom Brady then goes out and backs it up. He goes and plays his ass off and gets his team to the playoffs again (Sunday).”
Some observers might be willing to give Jones a mulligan having gone from well-regarded offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels to being coached by Matt Patricia, who has never previously run an offense. Esiason, though, doesn’t think Jones has earned that right.
“So, all I’m saying is that, I don’t necessarily know that he’s earned the right to act the way that he does at times, like frustrated, looking at the coaches and screaming and yelling, putting his hands to his head,” said Esiason, who played 10 years in the NFL. “Body language for a quarterback is so important. And I hate when quarterbacks sulk on the sideline; they have to be above all of that. They have to have the backbone. They have to have the leadership bone. They have to be able to look guys in the face and know what they’re doing. Don’t come off with your hands in the air.”
Last week, Jones was fending off a growing reputation as a “dirty” player for his questionable hit on Bengals cornerback Eli Apple.
“I think obviously that’s a big part of it, is everybody has an opinion and the biggest thing for me is focusing on being the best teammate I can be and earning the respect of the people in this building and the people I care about. Obviously, I have respect for everybody around the league,” Jones said. “It takes a lot to get to this league. There’s really good players out there, and we’re all playing hard and trying to win. At the end of the day, you have to keep that in mind. It’s a game and you want to just have fun, enjoy it and compete against each other. That’s something that I’ve always done and I know my teammates appreciate that about me.”
The 8-8 Patriots will make the playoffs if they can defeat the Bills in Buffalo on Sunday, but a postseason berth is an uphill climb as the Bills are favored by seven-and-a-half points.