You could make a strong case for Sunday's 38-3 loss to the Dallas Cowboys as the worst performance of New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones' NFL career.
Jones played horrendous, and that's a kind way to describe what we saw on the field.
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He completed 12 of 21 pass attempts for 150 yards with zero touchdowns and two interceptions. One of his interceptions was returned for a touchdown in the second quarter and gave the Cowboys a 18-3 lead. He also got strip-sacked in the second quarter and the Cowboys returned the fumble for a touchdown.
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick had finally seen enough in the third quarter and removed Jones from the game and put in backup Bailey Zappe.
Is this a low point for Jones since being drafted 15th overall by the Patriots in 2021?
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"It depends on how you look at it. For sure. I'm very competitive and I put a lot into it, and I feel really bad," Jones said in his postgame press conference. "I let me team down, let the coaches down, the whole organization, everyone, the fans. We've got a great fanbase, and I gotta put a better product out there to beat good teams. I'm going to take the positive route the best I can and hopefully it brings the best out of me."
The Patriots offense, despite not putting up a ton of points, did look better in the first three weeks of the season compared to much of what we see from this group last year.
How does a game like Sunday's change that mindset for the offense?
"For me, just bury it, try to learn from it and move on," Jones said. "Don't make it turn into another loss. My rookie year didn't start off great, we just kept working and I just tried to play better. That's what I have to do here. It's gotta be a lot better from me."
In fairness to Jones, the Patriots didn't do much Sunday, or during the entire offseason, to help his cause. The team still takes too many penalties, the offensive line play is subpar, and the lack of top-tier playmakers in the passing attack is glaring.
Still, this kind of performance just isn't acceptable for a starting quarterback, and the debate over whether Zappe should start Week 5 against the New Orleans Saints will only get louder over the next few days.
Jones was asked about his status as the starter going into next week.
"I think it will be a good test, for me, just stay focused on what I can control, and that's playing better," Jones said. "Just gotta evaluate everything. It wasn't my day today. Hopefully there are better days ahead."
Belichick said in his postgame press conference that the team is going forward with Jones as the starter.
If you look at the Patriots' remaining schedule, there aren't a ton of winnable games. The Week 5 matchup against the Saints is one of them. With that in mind, it's hard to downplay the significance of next week's game for Jones and the Patriots. It's put up or shut up time for Jones because if the Patriots drop to 1-4, their season is pretty much over.