Kendrick Bourne has great reaction to Colts linebacker’s Mac Jones comments originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The Indianapolis Colts have already violated one of the biggest rules when getting ready to play the New England Patriots.
Don’t give them bulletin board material!
The Patriots feed off bulletin board material, or any comments/criticism that could be used as motivation.
Colts linebacker Bobby Okereke basically gave away the team’s gameplan with comments about Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones earlier this week.
“I think (Jones is) good,” Okereke told reporters. “He’s confident back there. He’s got a good command of the offense. But we’re really going to try to make the game one-dimensional, see what he can do. We’re excited for the challenge.”
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Patriots wide receiver Kendrick Bourne was asked Tuesday about these remarks from Okereke, and he had a pretty good response.
“I think that’s just funny,” Bourne said at a press conference. “Obviously, we’re not a one-dimensional team. Last week we ran the ball, but conditions are conditions. That’s just a funny comment to me. I feel like we can do anything. We’re in control of what we do. It’s literally not about any other team. It’s about us. Mac knows the looks. We know the looks. We practice different looks. So nothing is a shock. Nothing is new.”
The Patriots only threw the ball three times in their Week 13 Monday night win over the Buffalo Bills, but that was more because the windy weather conditions made passing a genuine challenge, not because Jones is incapable of beating a team through the air.
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New England’s rushing attack is also one of the league’s best, and the Bills couldn’t stop it. If your opponent can’t slow down the run game, there’s no reason to let up.
Jones is among the most accurate quarterbacks in the league, ranking No. 3 in the entire league with a 70.3 completion percentage. He’s capable of leading the offense on long scoring drives, especially in weather-controlled environments such as Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
The Patriots already had plenty of motivation entering Saturday night. The race for the No. 1 seed in the AFC is a highly competitive one. Now they have even more motivation thanks to Okereke. Don’t be surprised if the Patriots’ win streak over the Colts reaches nine games this weekend.