Robert Kraft has a type for his boy crushes, and his latest muse could lead to the end of one of the cornerstones of the New England Patriots football dynasty. A recent report came out that indicates that the Kraft family is close to quarterback Mac Jones in an offseason where Bill Belichick is on the hot seat.
NFL News: Robert Kraft loves New England Patriots’ starting QBs
It’s been well-documented Kraft’s love for Tom Brady. He reportedly worked the scenes to have Jimmy Garoppolo traded from the team in order to keep Brady happy and with New England. Keeping Brady won the Patriots another Super Bowl.
Garoppolo, whether you think he’s good or not, led the San Francisco 49ers to two NFC Championships and was a drive away from winning the Super Bowl over the Kansas City Chiefs for the 2019 season. It’s possible Belichick’s succession plan with Garoppolo could have been more fruitful for the Patriots. And it’s even more possible Kraft’s new favorite could salt the soil.
Mac Jones was partying with legendary Patriots
With Brady retired from playing, and now an owner of the Las Vegas Raiders, Patriots owner Kraft seems to have a new chosen one. According to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe, Jones was seen at an exclusive party hosted by the Krafts on July 2nd that included recent retirees Brady and safety Devin McCourty–as seen in this screenshot of McCourty’s Instagram:
I had a brief interaction with Jonathan Kraft this spring, and it was clear that he passionately defends and protects Jones. Now, Jones is apparently getting the invite to the Hamptons to party with both Robert and Jonathan. Jones appeared to be one of the few, if not only, current Patriots to get an invite.
The timing of Jones’ ascension into the Patriots owner’s good graces is odd. After a great rookie campaign, Jones struggled in year two last season.
In Jones’ defense, he lost offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels’ for the 2022 season after he left for the Las Vegas Raiders head coaching job. The infrastructure Belichick replaced McDaniels with was an egregious mistake that has since been overhauled this offseason.
Why would Robert Kraft prioritize Mac Jones?
Regardless of Jones’ handicap in 2022, it seems odd for the Krafs to fawn over a walking question mark. Volin reports Belichick has cold feelings between himself and Jones, who Belichick drafted in the first round of the 2021 draft. Volin speculates Jones’ selection was a peace offering to the Kraft family to replace the quarterback cupboard after Brady left.
That theory seems odd to me in part because Belichick didn’t owe Kraft a young quarterback after the owner sabotaged the Garoppolo succession plan. However, if Belichick did that to please Kraft, the plan seems to have backfired by year three. Volin thinks the Krafts are willing to risk their family legacy on Jones to fill their ego:
“They had mud on their faces when Brady skipped town and they had no succession plan at quarterback. If Jones can lead the Patriots back to prominence, the Krafts will look like geniuses again — men who have the secret sauce for picking quarterbacks and building stable, winning franchises. But if Jones flops, we can add the Krafts to the list of those who were propped up by Brady’s unexpected greatness.”
Bill Belichick is on the New England Patriots hot seat
That’s a pretty ballsy move for the Krafts to place their chips on an unproven NFL quarterback over a six-time Super Bowl-winning coach. And while Brady won all six of them with Belichick, he put up just 13 points of offense in his last Super Bowl with the Patriots.
Kraft has applied pressure on Belichick this offseason with his statements on needing to make the playoffs. Is he really willing to blow up the dynasty for Jones?
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