Mac Jones’ response to OBJ-to-Patriots rumors was interesting originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
You’ll find plenty of people who think the New England Patriots shouldn’t add Odell Beckham Jr. Mac Jones apparently isn’t one of them.
The New England Patriots quarterback was asked Monday about the Cleveland Browns wide receiver, who is set to hit waivers at 4 p.m. ET and can be signed by any NFL team if he goes unclaimed after 24 hours.
“I think Odell’s a great player. I watched him growing up,” Jones told WEEI’s “Merloni & Fauria” radio show. “That’s not my decision, but we’re open to have whoever wants to come here and help us win.
“You’ll have to ask people with higher knowledge than me on that one, but we’re not opposed to it at all.”
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Jones could have stopped at “Odell’s a great player” and pleaded the fifth on whether New England should pursue the talented wideout. It sounds like the rookie quarterback would enjoying throwing to Beckham in a Patriots uniform, though.
We can see where Jones is coming from: Beckham is an immensely talented three-time Pro Bowler who would give New England’s offense an explosive No. 1 option in the passing game.
But Beckham also comes with red flags — notably regarding how he’d mesh with Jones after an apparent falling-out with Baker Mayfield in Cleveland.
“I wouldn’t touch Odell Beckham if I was the Patriots,” Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer said Sunday on NBC Sports Boston, as seen in the video above. “… If there’s one primary similarity between Tom Brady and Mac Jones, it’s that they’re at their best when they’re playing point guard out there, when all five guys are alive in the route. … You don’t want your young quarterback having a player that he feels like he has to placate on a constant basis.”
There’s a good chance Beckham lands elsewhere anyway; the Seattle Seahawks reportedly are his preferred destination, and the Patriots are only operating with roughly $4 million in cap space. (Beckham is owed $7.5 million on the rest of his current contract.)
But if Beckham somehow makes it to Foxboro, Jones seemingly would welcome him with open arms.