Miami Gardens, Fla. - Rookie quarterback Mack Jones returned for a touchdown in Sunday's regular-season finale in the New England Patriots' 33-24 loss to the Miami Dolphins, and later lost a fumble as he was critical while the team reached the playoffs. ready for
"It's so embarrassing, honestly, just from my point of view, the way I played — it wasn't good enough," Jones said. "I can get better. It starts with me. I'm the quarterback and that's my job, to bring success to the people around me."
Jones finished 30 of 20 for 261 yards with a touchdown and an interception. The interception was a pick-6 that put the team into a 14-0 hole in the first quarter, while his lost fumble came on a center-QB exchange in the third quarter when Team Miami was at the 22-yard line.
The Patriots, who finished the regular season 10-7, will be on the road over the wild-card weekend. They were waiting for the results of Sunday's game between the Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders to know who they would play.
If the Chargers win, the Patriots travel to face the Cincinnati Bengals. If the Raiders win, the team goes to see the Buffalo Bills.
"You have to watch the movie and learn from it, and realize how embarrassing it is to play like that," said 15th overall Pick Jones from Alabama. "But at the same time, we have a great opportunity next week and that's all you can ask for."
Jones and the Patriots charged late in Sunday's fourth quarter—when he was 9-of-9 for 121 yards and a touchdown—but the hole he dug himself in the game proved too much to overcome .
"He's tough, he's resilient," said veteran tight end Hunter Henry. "He didn't play his best early, made some crucial mistake; I know he's going to learn from them and grow. He's young. But still, just his resilience, toughness, taking a few shots. He's a tough, tough guy." It's boy."
Jones, however, was not interested in any silver linings.
"We lost and that's all that matters," he said. "We put the other units in bad shape the way we played. You can't blame or point fingers at anyone other than me and the offense. We know we can play better."
Of the pick-6, he said: "I knew what coverage they were playing. I just didn't see the guy on the outside and I threw it too wide. It was my fault. It was cover 2, something in it." Neither is it. It's simple, and I'll have to read it and do a better job getting the ball to the right guy."
Regarding the poor snap that came with backup center Ted Karras in the game, he said: "I've been doing this since Pop Warner. Just get the ball off the center. It doesn't matter who the center is. It was ' Ted's mistake. It was my fault. I have to get the ball and run it back. It wasn't some huge game that required a bunch of things."
Jones, who started every game in his first season, finished with a 67.57 completion percentage, the second-highest by a rookie in NFL history, behind Dallas Cowboys' Dak Prescott (67.76% in 2016).
According to ESPN Stats and Information Research, Jones achieved the feat despite blitzing at the highest rate in the league—34% of his dropbacks.
Before the team left for Miami on Sunday night, Jones was looking forward to the playoffs.
"I think we have to put a better product out there, especially to win the big games," he said. "At the same time, you can't feel sorry for yourself. You have to move on and learn from your mistakes."