Has Mac Jones done enough to win the Patriots' starting QB job over Cam Newton?

The future might have arrived earlier than the New England Patriots anticipated.

At the beginning of training camp in late July, Pats head coach Bill Belichick said that the incumbent quarterback, Cam Newton, is the team's starter.

Belichick took that stance despite the Patriots' selecting Mac Jones with the 15th overall pick in April's NFL Draft. 

As the preseason progressed, however, the rookie showed flashes of potential, and Newton's grasp on the job seemingly became more tenuous.

When asked Aug. 16 if he'd been told that he would start New England's season opener, Newton said the media's guess was as good as his.

"Y’all sitting up here asking silly questions to me, and I’m looking at y’all with the same thing, so I don’t know what y’all want me to say," Newton said. "No, you know that. You know that he hasn’t said that, so for you to just ask the question, you know, it is what it is"

Most recently, Newton's absence from practice due to COVID-19 protocols opened the door even wider for Jones to make his case.

The rookie reportedly was "surgical" in some of last week's joint practices against the New York Giants, at one point completing 18 passes in a row.

That set the stage for Sunday's preseason finale for the Pats against the Giants, in which Newton got the starting nod for the third game in a row.

He didn't fare well in his limited action. The 32-year-old went 2-for-5 for 10 yards and an interception, finishing with a passer rating of 8.3.

Jones, on the other hand, completed 10 of 14 pass attempts for 156 yards, one touchdown and a passer rating of 131.8 in a 22-20 win for New England.

Following the game, Belichick shied away from naming a Week 1 starter.

"No. We still have a lot of decisions to make," he told reporters when asked if he had made a decision.

All told, here is how each QB fared in three preseason games:

• Newton: Seven drives, 66.7% completion percentage, 162 passing yards, 7.7 yards per pass attempt, one TD, one INT, 85.8 passer rating, zero times sacked
• Jones: 17 drives, 69.2% completion percentage, 389 passing yards, 7.5 yards per pass attempt, one TD, zero INT, 97.4 passer rating, five times sacked

Did the rookie do enough over the course of camp and preseason to claim the starting job?

Chris Broussard, who just joined "First Things First" as a full-time cohost, said he still believes Newton is the guy for New England.

"I look at this quarterback competition like a heavyweight championship fight," Broussard said. "Which means that the opponent, or the challenger, has to win decisively to get the decision. … Right now, if I'm the Patriots, I'm starting Cam Newton. … He's a leader on that team. The coaches love him. The players love him, and it's an easy transition from Cam to Mac Jones if Cam struggles."

The transition Broussard alluded to could come as soon as Week 5, in his estimation. 

Shannon Sharpe of "Undisputed" had a similar read on the situation in New England. In Sharpe's mind, Newton will start Week 1, but the veteran could get the hook sooner rather than later if he doesn't perform well.

"Mac Jones is coming," Sharpe said. "And I believe Mac Jones is going to push Cam and, eventually, probably take this job over. But he's going to push him throughout the entirety of the year." 

If Newton is essentially a lame duck, why wouldn't the Patriots just go with Jones to start the season? That's the question Nick Wright of "First Things First" put forth.

"I think everyone on this panel is going to say, ‘Yeah, we think at some point, Mac Jones will be the starter,’" Wright said. "Well, if that's the case, then it's hard for me to make the argument not to have that ‘some point’ be immediately."

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If Belichick were to anoint Jones to start the season, ESPN's Dan Orlovsky said it could be a boon for the Patriots.

"If Mac Jones is their starter, which he would be for me, I'd put him at the very top of the list for Offensive Rookie of the Year," Orlovsky said.

With Jones under center, the Patriots would also close the gap on the rest of the AFC's elite, in Orlovsky's mind, such as the Kansas City Chiefs, Cleveland Browns and Buffalo Bills.

Given the way Belichick has operated throughout his career, particularly as it pertains to revealing crucial information, odds are this QB1 decision won't be announced with any haste.

The Patriots have just shy of two weeks to mull things over before we all get our answer when the Pats will host the Miami Dolphins on Sept. 12 to kick off their 2021 campaign.

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