Mac Jones' work ethic is what separates him this year's rookie QB class

After all the bubbling hype around rookie quarterback Mac Jones, the New England Patriots fell short in the Week 1 loss to the Miami Dolphins.

Jones held his own in his first career start by completing 29-of-39 passes for 281 yards with a touchdown. The Alabama product nearly guided the Patriots down the field for the game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter, but a red-zone fumble by running back Damien Harris sealed the team’s fate.

Work ethic will lead to a successful NFL career for Mac Jones

The tough season-opener loss quickly led Jones to dive into breaking down film on the New York Jets in preparation for Week 2 action.

“I mean it’s not fun to lose, so just learning from what we could have done better is definitely just the only thing you can do really,” Jones said, via Mark Daniels of The Providence Journal. “You can sit there and feel bad for yourself for a little bit, because that’s your human [nature], and that’s what you’re supposed to do, or you’re in the wrong profession.

But you’ve just got to move on. So the 24-hour rule – just after 24 hours. Some people it’s less, but for me after that, just move on and play the next play, play the next game. You’re only as good as your last game so we lost and that’s what people remember, so we just got to move forward.”

Beyond his promising command of the offense so early in his NFL career, Jones has received much recognition from his teammates and coaching staff concerning his work ethic. It’s played a critical factor in the team letting go of Cam Newton to give him the starting job to begin his rookie campaign.

Jones has already left a strong impression on head coach Bill Belichick in that regard, leading him to sing his praises over the offseason.

“Mac has come in here and worked hard,” Belichick said last month via WEEI. “He’s put in a ton of work every day. I think that has paid off and it’s showed up in the things he’s been able to improve on. If he makes a mistake he learns from it and works hard at it — he works hard in the first place so he doesn’t make mistakes. Maybe he gets it right the first time, which is sometimes hard at that position. His work ethic is very good.”

The Patriots hold supreme confidence in Jones, and his actions, such as his intense film study, may pave the way for him to lead the franchise to tremendous success. Of course, it’s quite early in the process, but he’s clearly doing the leg work to give himself the best chance to succeed.

The team’s previous quarterback had a great work ethic, and it set the table for him to lead the franchise to sustained success over two decades. So the fact that Jones has fully embraced that aspect of the job is quite an encouraging and telling sign.

Meanwhile, New England will give him every opportunity to showcase that he can fill the massive shoes of becoming the team’s next franchise quarterback. Time will tell if he can reach those lofty aspirations.