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Tom Brady's career is a spectacle, that much is for certain. But all good things come to an end. Meanwhile, his heir apparent Mac Jones is beginning his own career.
Interestingly, both quarterbacks have made a similar start to their careers. Of course, some aspects could not be more different. However, through a certain Brady-tinted lens, Mac Jones' intro into the NFL is quite similar to that of the Patriots legend himself.
How Mac Jones' NFL journey prologue has been similar to his predecessor
Drafted after all of the top prospects
Of course, quarterbacks like Kyle Trask and Kellen Mond were drafted after Mac Jones. However, the premium quarterbacks were all taken as soon as possible in the first round. Trevor Lawrence, Zach Wilson, Trey Lance and Justin Fields were all taken before Mac Jones. As a result, he was passed on by most NFL teams in need of a quarterback. The Patriots took him as he fell to down to #15.
As a sixth-round draft pick, Tom Brady was passed on by every team in the NFL multiple times and then some. Eventually, Brady fell to a spot the Patriots liked him at. While Jones did not fall nearly as far as Tom Brady, he was still passed on in a substantial way.
Took the job from a journey-man quarterback mentor
Few had Mac Jones chasing Cam Newton out of the building in their 2021 bingo card. The surprising change is reminiscent of Tom Brady taking the job from Drew Bledsoe.
Both Newton and Bledsoe were performing at a decent level that would be acceptable for many teams around the NFL. Both times, however, the Patriots opted to take a risk with the young quarterback over the comfortable veteran. It seems history is repeating itself.
Bill Belichick was the mastermind of both quarterbacks' inception into the NFL
Bill Belichick was responsible for developing Tom Brady from the ground up. He taught him his first lessons in the NFL. Those same lessons were given to Mac Jones this pre-season.
Belichick knows what works with quarterbacks. There's a large sample size right there. He knows how to squeeze the best out of his play callers, especially from the get-go. Mac Jones' early notes may even resemble the early notes of Tom Brady come Week 1.
Of course, all of this is not to say that Mac Jones is going to win a Super Bowl in the next two years. However, the similarities thus far between the two quarterbacks are interesting, to say the least.
